Stand by me
by Hawaianangelgirl
Summary: Coauthored with Deyse... The assignment is to help someone who had lost everything in her life, including her faith in God. But after a turn in the course of the events, it’s the faithless woman who will help the angels to see that God always has a pla
1. Default Chapter

Stand by me  
  
By Deyse Magalhães and Gabriela Valenzuela  
  
Prologue  
  
Bourbon street was quite crowded that sunny day when Andrew and Monica were supposed to meet Tess and their new assignment. The two young angels were lost amid the waves of tourists that filled up the shops looking for any kind of souvenirs to take home back from New Orleans. They had arrived early and had spent a rare hour of free time just wandering hand in hand around the streets and the shops.  
  
It had been quite a long since the last time Andrew had visited New Orleans and he had never been there with Monica, so he had found it the perfect chance to spend a little one on one time with his best friend. Walking with her, he found himself enjoying that time more than he had thought. He always loved seeing her so relaxed and happy: that child-like innocence that made her dark eyes sparkle with the most simple things, either a little boat inside a bottle or a coffee mug with a Mississippi landscape on it. He let her go and kept an eye on her as if she was a little girl he was taking care of.  
  
They had gotten into one of the souvenir shops and he was just seeing her picking through the key rings when a voice startled him. "Is she your girlfriend?"  
  
Andrew turned to face the owner of the shop with a shocked face. "N-no" he managed to answer.  
  
"Why not?"  
  
The blond angel looked at Monica once again, not knowing how to explain his relationship with her. He sighed heavily and his silence allowed the man to keep on talking. "You're in love with her, that's easy to see."  
  
"It's not what you're thinking, sir; we..."  
  
He was trying to explain himself when Monica came near them. "Look, Andrew," she said, interrupting the short conversation and showing him a key ring with a small angel hanging from it. "Don't you think it would be perfect for Tess?"  
  
Her wide smile went directly to his heart and he forgot everything around them. "I guess she'd love it, angel. She looks just like you," he stroked her cheek gently and smiled back at her.  
  
Monica chuckled and then turned to the man standing besides Andrew. "I'm taking this, sir, please."  
  
"Sure," the man said. Both he and the angel saw her walking towards the cashier and before he left, he told Andrew: "If you don't risk to get her, you may risk to lose her, pal, don't forget that."  
  
Minutes later the angels were walking hand in hand again on the crowded avenue. "What were you talking about with the man at the store?" Monica asked.  
  
Andrew released her hand and wrapped an arm around her shoulders instead. "You, actually."  
  
"Me? And why would he be interested on me?"  
  
"Well... maybe because you were the prettiest customer down there."  
  
He heard her giggling and felt her arm encircling his waist. "That's according to you."  
  
"That's according to God, baby." He looked at her and felt his heart jumping of joy when he met her bright eyes. "Now let's go find Tess, we're a little late already."  
  
Tess was observing a group of tourists walking along the old lane and taking every opportunity they had to register each part of the beautiful town. The dark skinned angel sighed deeply and glanced at her watch but, before she could even raise her head, she heard two familiar voices right beside her:  
  
"Hullo, Tess!"  
  
"Here we are..."  
  
She looked at her two charges with a questioning face: "Well, isn't it a coincidence I was exactly asking myself where you two could be?", her voice had a slight stern tone, as well as her eyes. Monica and Andrew exchanged a quick glance and the Irish angel was quick to apologise.  
  
"Actually, we're a wee bit late, but it was all my fault, I'm sorry, Tess. Andrew and I started to walk around the city and it was so beautiful and there were so many things to see... I lost track of time, you know. Besides, I wanted to buy you something and there were so many beautiful souvenirs I couldn't make up my mind so easily. But I hope you like this..."  
  
She gave a very small present box to the older angel, and, as she opened it, the expression on Tess' face turned from stern to a surprised (and rather guilty) one. "Oh, Angel girl, it's beautiful!", she exclaimed, with a content smile. The other two angels looked at each other again, now a lot more relieved, and Monica wrapped her arm around the supervisor's.  
  
"You can use this key ring to put your car keys and it matches with the hood Andrew and I gave you some time ago. I thought it would also remind you of us."  
  
"We just wanted to make sure that you'll keep on always thinking about us!" the blond angel added, wrapping his arm around Tess' shoulder.  
  
"I love it, babies, I really do. But you know I carry you two right here inside my heart and I would never forget about you, not for a single moment," she answered back, really touched with that sweet tiny act.  
  
"We know that, Tess. But I think that remembering the ones we love when they are not near us can be quite comforting too. At least it is for me!" Monica said, squeezing the supervisor's hand and shooting a loving glance at the blond angel, causing both of them to smile back at her.  
  
"And how could we ever spend one second without thinking about our sweet angel girl, huh?"  
  
"I don't think this would ever be possible, Tess!" the supervisor and the blond angel respectively said, causing their angelic friend to smile even more, feeling her heart filled with love for the two of them.  
  
Completely forgetting about her previous annoyance, Tess looked again at the tourists that were near them.  
  
"Now, if I can remember, there's an assignment waiting for us right across the street..."  
  
The two angels stared at the group of people with questioning faces.  
  
"So, who is our assignment, Tess?"  
  
"The tourists aren't your assignment, angel girl. That woman is..."  
  
They saw a middle aged woman guiding the group and, as they walked, she was providing all sort of information about the buildings, streets and any other monument that stood in their way. Although she had a friendly smile upon her face, it was possible to see a slight trace of sadness deep in her eyes.  
  
"That is Judith. She has been working as a tourist guide for many years," the supervisor explained.  
  
"This must be a very exciting job; there are so many new people and places she has the opportunity to know!"  
  
"Not for Judith, angel girl."  
  
"Why not?" Andrew wanted to know.  
  
"Well, although she's surrounded by people most part of the time, Judith is one of the most lonely souls on this Earth. She's lost the ones she loved most in this life and, together with them, she also lost her faith in God."  
  
"Oh, dear...", Monica murmured, immediately feeling sorry for the woman.  
  
Andrew nodded his head. "We have to show her a reason to keep on living and, consequently, bring her faith back."  
  
"That's it, angel boy. Your assignment is to help her to recover her faith and to show her God always has a plan even when we can't see it at the moment," the supervisor completed.  
  
They looked back at the tourists, who were now passing by a beautiful ancient church, and exchanged a rather shocked and surprised look when the woman skipped the huge monument without even giving the group a single information about it. 


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Next morning, Andrew was standing on the corner of Orion travels, checking his pocket watch once and again and waiting for his best friend to arrive. Finally, he distinguished her small figure and she waved hello. He rolled his eyes and smiled at seeing her sipping at a huge paper cup of what he could guess was hot coffee, her favourite drink.

"I should've imagined!" he scolded her in a playful way.

"You want some? It's an incredible Tanzanian coffee," she smiled and offered him the cup. "Don't you think it's great there is a coffee shop so near the place of our assignment?"

"What I think it's that I'll have to take better care of you. Otherwise I'll have to deal with Tess!" he said pointing her cup with his index.

She chuckled finding his concern lovely. "There's a good selection of chocolate as well. You may want to try them later."

"Hmm... but right now we have a job to do, so hurry with your coffee. I don't think you want to arrive late in your first day!" He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and they headed towards the office.

The middle aged woman they'd seen the day before appeared at the front desk as soon as the angels opened the door. "You must be Andrew and Monica. The people at the agency told me you'd be here today." They shook hands. "Come on, take a seat. I'm Judith Harris." Checking some papers, she continued: "I see you've never worked as tourist guides before, but you've worked on campsites several times. It's not too different. Do you know New Orleans well enough?"

"I've been here some times before..." Monica said timidly.

"And I think I know some interesting parts of Louisiana history... first hand if I can say so," the angel of death added blinking an eye to his friend and squeezing her hand under the desk.

"Okay then. The jobs are yours. The first days we'll take small groups and I'll give all the explanations. You'll have to study a lot but I think in a week you'll be able to take a group by yourselves."

"Thank you, Mrs. Harris," Monica said.

"Please, call me Judith. Here," she took two T-shirts from a drawer from the desk identical to the one she was wearing. "I think small is for you, Monica, and you're large, Andrew. Put them on. Normally I don't ask my employees another uniform but the T-shirts and the caps. I'll give you yours before we leave."

"When do we start?" the blond angel asked.

"Right now, of course!" Judith stood up and indicated them to followed her to the private. "Mabel should be here any minute. She's my secretary and she stays here with Lucille while the guides —that means us— are out. We normally pick up the groups at The Fairmont New Orleans hotel, so there you'll met Tony, our driver."

When the three of them arrived to the hotel, the group of tourists was already gathered in the hall and when one of the receptionist saw the woman and the angels coming, she smiled and told the group those were their guides.

"I'll introduce you to the tourists," Judith said to her new employees before they reached the group. "Here is the schedule for today", she said, giving each of them a sheet of paper with their destinations and places to be visited.

"Seems we got a lot of attractions to see.", Andrew noticed, examining the paper.

"Well, yes, but I guess today will be pretty calm 'cause we'll stay in town all the time. So there'll be no buses and no roads to travel, fortunately." The woman turned to the group of about 30 people and announced: "Good morning, everybody. Today we'll walk around the city and visit the most important sites here, so, besides sightseeing, you will all lose some calories! There are two people here who'll be with us from now on, these are Monica and Andrew." The angels greeted the group with friendly smiles. "Anything you want or any questions you have you can ask them; they'll be with you all the time and will be pleased to help you whenever you need.", Judith added.

Monica nodded her head: "Judith is right; we are here to help."

Time went by fast on that sunny and pleasant morning and, after visiting a series of tourist spots, they headed the group to a diner, as it was past midday. On their way, they passed by St. Louis Cathedral and, noticing that it was not included in the schedule, Monica approached Judith and pointed it out: "I guess you must have forgotten to add it to the program...", she said, holding the paper and noticing the great sadness that suddenly appeared in the woman's eyes.

"No, no. I didn't forget it, Monica. In fact, I only include the most important attractions in the schedules, I mean, the ones that would really make a difference when the visitors remember their trip," she replied, doing an extra effort not to show her real feelings.

The Irish angel looked deep inside the lady's eyes: "And a church wouldn't make a difference?"

Before Judith could reply to her question, a young woman, who was walking quite close to them, heard their conversation. "Excuse me, aren't we going to enter the cathedral?"

"I'm afraid not, dear, you see, there are lots of other attractions to visit yet, and I'm sure you'll find them more interesting. Besides, the cathedral was not included in the schedule and if we stop here, we'll be running out of time later...", Judith politely answered. But the young lady insisted:

"But I'd just like to stop for a few minutes. Please, it's very important..."

"Well, I can go with her, Judith.", Monica intervened, sensing a certain urgency in the tone of the girl's voice, "I guess some more minutes won't make such a difference in our schedule, right?"

Seeing the woman's reluctance, Andrew and Monica exchanged a quick glance and the blond angel suggested: "I don't see any problem either, the Red Fish Grill is right across the street and, while they visit the cathedral, the rest of us could have lunch, as it's almost 1 PM."

"Alright, then. You can go with her, Monica."

"I'd be happy to."

The huge cathedral was empty at that time of the day, as the mass had finished an hour before. The interior of the building was now in shades, although the sun light illuminated the stained glasses that decorated the upper walls. Monica and the young woman walked along the aisle admiring their surroundings:

"I like it here. It gives a sensation of peace, of comfort... as if it were a shelter...", the girl said.

"I guess you're not talking about the place itself, but about what it represents, isn't it?"

"I suppose so."

They sat in the front pew and contemplated the altar for a few minutes: "Do you think God is really listening when all those people are here, praying together, asking for all sorts of different things?

"Oh, yes, He is.", the Irish angel replied, with a friendly and warm smile.

"How come?"

"What's your name?"

"Susan."

"Well, Susan, during people's journey here on Earth, there's one loving Father who watches them grow, who shares their joy and who grieves at their sorrow. He knows each and every single soul and what's in their hearts because He created them. And of course He is walking together with them, even if some of His children aren't aware of His presence, even if some people refuse to believe Him."

The young woman's eyes lightened hearing those words, and she smiled: "I believe this. It's just that sometimes I just have to listen to that one more time..."

"To be sure that's really the truth," the angel completed and watched as Susan nodded her head. Then, Monica continued to talk. "Well, that's the truth, Susan. And when one of God's children offer a prayer, either to ask for something or to thank Him, of course He's listening to that, He already knows what's happening."

Susan's eyes glistened with some tears and she looked back at the altar: "I was diagnosed with liver cancer a few months ago."

Hearing that, the expression on Monica's face turned into one of sadness: "I'm terribly sorry..."

"Although I'm under treatment, I've already realised that the doctors don't hold much hope in my case. I have to confess that I don't even know what I want to ask God..."

Monica took the girl's hand and squeezed it: "Wouldn't it be the peace and comfort you've just mentioned when we entered here?"

"Maybe... yes... I think you're right...", she sighed shortly and kept on talking. "The truth is that I'm terribly scared, Monica. I'm afraid of what's about to come, either in the next few months and when... when I'm gone..."

"You're facing a disease and fear is normal, Susan. But there's one thing you can be sure of and remember in those difficult hours: your heavenly and loving Father will be carrying you in His arms whenever you feel weak and defeated. All you have to do is let the faith you have inside your heart guide you to Him. And when it's time, He will be waiting for you to live in His presence, where there is no suffering, no pain; only joy, and where, one day, your beloved ones will meet you."

Tears rolled down Susan's face and she smiled again: "There's so much hope in your words."

"There's much hope and reassurance in God's love, Susan. You can trust He's right beside you, ready to hold your hand and guide you through the adversities life may bring. He never abandons His children, He never lets them down."

"Thank you so much, Monica. When my parents gave me this trip as a birthday present, I accepted it as a way to forget about what I was going through. I couldn't imagine God would put you in my way so that I could hear the truth I had been searching for."

Also with some tears in her brown eyes, the Irish angel nodded her head: "He loves you very much, Susan. You can be sure of that."

"I know He does. Would you like to pray with me?"

"Sure."

Unseen to them, Judith had been standing a few steps from the altar and hearing the whole conversation in the most absolute silence. With a pensive expression on her face, the woman left the cathedral without being noticed, heading back to the restaurant where Andrew and the group of the tourists were.

Andrew guided the group to the diner on Bourbon street and Canal street and indicated them lunch was already paid with the excursion and that they had an hour more to visit the souvenirs stores around. They filled up the tables and when Judith arrived, she guided the blond angel to one in a corner with an sign of 'reserved area' on it. Monica and Susan arrived some minutes later and while the girl sat together with the other tourists, the Irish angel joined her friend and her boss.

"Welcome, Judith" a waitress greeted the guide and smiled at the other visitors. "I see you've found your guides."

"Hi, Kathy. These are Monica and Andrew."

"Hello," the young woman said. "Are you taking the buffet or you want to see the menus?"

"Give us the menus and we'll decide," Judith asked. "Oh, and bring us a jar of very cold lemonade. It's too hot out there!"

Once they had ordered, Monica excused herself to go to the bathroom and wash her face. Andrew followed her with his sight and when he turned he found his boss looking at him. He smiled at her and asked: "What, Judith?"

The woman shook her head. "Nothing. Just... How long have you known Monica?"

He raised his eyebrows and smiled. "Years now, why?"

"She seems to be quite something!"

"Oh, yeah, she is!" Andrew chuckled and looked attentively at the woman knowing she wanted to ask more.

"I saw her with that girl over there," Judith pointed at Susan, "at Saint Louis. She has liver cancer, you know?"

"And she told Monica about it..." Andrew interrupted knowing his friend always managed to get people to trust her.

"Yes! I don't like my orders to be disobeyed. I got in to tell them to hurry, but then I heard what Monica was telling her and it... surprised me. This girl was telling her she was afraid of dying and Monica told her..."

"... that there was nothing to be afraid of."

"Exactly! How did you know it?"

The angel of death just smiled. "I know Monica... very well I'd say."

"Then she started to talk about God, about how she'd live in His presence forever and that there would not be any more pain or suffering. See? I don't believe in God but Monica... She looked so certain of what she was saying..."

"She is, Judith. And what you saw this morning is just part of her heart. That's who she is, kind, compassionate..."

"But how can she be so sure about God?"

"Because she's witnessed His love and so have I. Just to give you and example, Monica is for me a present from God."

Judith chuckled slightly. "I used to think that too... about my husband and my daughter... but life taught me not to," she concluded seeing that Monica was coming back. "You have 45 min. after lunch to go wherever you want to though I recommend you not to wear yourselves out," she told the two angels. "We have to work tomorrow. Weekends are normally crowded than the rest of the week."

At the end of the day, the tourists returned to the hotel and Andrew and Monica went to say goodbye to Judith.

"We'll see you tomorrow morning, at the same time, then."

"Have a good night, Judith.", they respectively said.

But, before they left, the woman called them back: "Monica, Andrew, wait, please..."

"Yes?", the Irish angel responded.

"I was wondering if... well... maybe you two could come over my house and have dinner with me..."

"That would be lovely, wouldn't it, Andrew?"

"Sure! We'd be happy to!"

"Great. My car is outside, come with me!"

Judith didn't live far from the hotel; they arrived at her house in less than 20 minutes. While Monica set the table, Andrew helped the woman at the kitchen and soon they prepared a simple but tasty dinner.

"I couldn't imagine you knew so much about cooking, Andrew!," Judith said, impressed with the blond angel's abilities.

He smiled, pleased with that compliment. "Well, I just hope it tastes good..."

"Andrew cooks wonderfully, Judith!", Monica spoke, shooting her dearest friend a loving smile, which he immediately returned, "you can be sure it's delicious!"

They sat at the table and, noticing that the woman was ready to eat, the angels exchanged a quick glance. "Would you like to thank the Lord, Judith?," the Irish angel asked, attentively watching her reaction.

Judith was mute for a few seconds, with an expression of indecision on her face. "Well, I... it's... it's been a long time I don't have guests for dinner, so... why don't you do it?"

Andrew and Monica looked at each other once again and the two conjoined their hands and bowed their heads. With a certain delay, Judith repeated their action and the Irish angel offered a short prayer. Then, they started eating and the woman nodded her head:

"Monica is right, it's wonderful, Andrew!"

"Don't give me much credit; I didn't do it alone, you did most of it!," he replied, a bit shyly.

"But you gave me many tips and since it's been a long time I don't cook, I guess I forgot the basics!"

The friendly conversation flowed for over an hour as, since from the start, Judith found it very easy to talk to the angels and it didn't take long before she felt as if they had been friends for a long time. They were having the desert when Monica looked around them, noticing how big the two pavement house was.

"Do you live here all by yourself?", she wanted to know.

"Yes..."

"It's such a big house..."

Judith gave a short sigh and the two angels observed how dramatically the expression on her face changed from cheerful to a deeply sad one. "It... It hasn't been always like this..."

Taking some courage, she stood up and went to the chest of drawers, in the living room. Then, she returned holding a photo frame in her hands. Sadly, she handed it to the angels, who observed a picture of Judith, a few years younger than she was now, a man, of about the same age as hers, and a beautiful teenage girl. The trio was smiling happily and holding onto one another.

"These were my daughter and husband. These picture was taken 3 years ago, one week before they died..."

The angels eyes' were immediately filled with sadness with that revelation.

"I'm so sorry, Judith," Monica spoke, holding the frame.

"It was a bus accident. We had taken a weekend off at the shore and when we were coming home it crashed with another bus. There were a lot of people injured, in both vehicles. The passengers were taken to the hospital but my husband died soon after he arrived there. My daughter was in a coma for 10 days, but she didn't resist either as her injuries were very serious."

The Irish angel stretched her arm and held the woman's hand. "I imagine you three were through a terrible pain..."

"Yes... but what hurts the most is that God didn't finish his job properly and left me here to cry for the two people I loved most in my entire life..."

"Please don't say that, Judith. God didn't want this to happen to your family.", Andrew said. "A terrible accident took their lives and God has seen all your tears and has cried together with you all through these years."

"He understands your sorrow and suffers as much as you do," Monica completed.

"Then if He can understand it why doesn't He take me away too?!"

"Sometimes God has a greater purpose in His mind, a greater plan. We can't see it at first but, later, even the most terrible things can turn into something good. And if you are here, it means that He has a special plan for you too."

"Do you really believe that I could be of any use? I lost my faith and my hope the night my daughter died and since then all I feel inside is a deep void that no one can fulfil."

"God can, if you let Him.", Monica spoke. Andrew also reached for Judith's hand.

"Your daughter and husband went through a lot of pain when that tragedy happened. But now, at this very moment, I can assure you that they live in the presence of God where, one day, you will also be. And when this day comes, you'll be able to hug them again and tell the two how much you love them. But until that day, allow your Heavenly Father to restore your faith and hope so that your days aren't filled with endless sadness."

She reflected on those words for a few seconds and stared at them. "There's some sort of light in you two... Something that I cannot explain, but that I can feel... Is it possible that... that God has sent you to tell me all this?"

"Why don't you give yourself a chance to find that out? Why don't you accept this as a fact and then let God's love fill your heart?", Monica suggested, with a warm smile.

Judith nodded her head: "I promise I'll try... I'll try very hard... And thank you."


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Monica and Andrew were surprised the next morning when they arrived to the office and did not find Judith there. Mabel, Judith's secretary, was waiting for them and greeted them as soon as the angels appeared. "Hey there, how was your first day at work?"

"Hello, Mabel," Monica answered. "It was really good actually, Judith is a great boss."

"Oh, yes, she is... And she's waiting for you already."

"Where?" Andrew asked running his eyes around the place.

"She's not here. She's already at the hotel. You won't believe this, but she's decided to do something she hasn't done in years!"

"What?"

"Going to Baton Rouge!" Looking at the puzzled faces of the two angels, Mabel rolled her eyes and explained herself. "That means going by bus! She hasn't been on a bus since..."

"Since the accident with her husband and her daughter..." Monica completed the sentence for her.

"Yeah... Did she tell you?"

"Yesterday night but I never thought she'd change her mind so quickly," the little angel said looking at her blond friend, who was smiling at her.

"She was a different woman this morning! I almost fainted when she said she had planned this trip for today! God knows what you told her, but I know it worked wonders on her!"

"That's Monica, Mabel, you're just starting to know her," the angel of death said smiling at his friend and wrapping an arm around her little shoulders.

"So, what are still doing here?" Mabel joked. "Go to the hotel, and don't come back until tonight, ok?"

"Ok, we'll bring you a nice souvenir!" Andrew responded again on their way out of the office.

A big red bus was already standing at the front door of The Fairmont New Orleans and the angels found their temporary boss surrounded by a group of excited tourists. "Andrew, Monica, just in time!"

"Judith, you really surprised us. This is... a big change in plans I'd say!" Andrew told her.

"Well, I remember two friends convinced me to go over my fear last night, so... My two friends should start to work! We sold the hole trip in less than 15 min. and they are already coming. I promise them a really nice day, right?" she said referring to the people that surrounded her. "These are Andrew and Monica. Whatever you need, you can address to them too, ok? Now get ready, we're leaving in 20 more minutes at most."

Andrew and Monica saw Judith going back to the reception and they exchanged a look. "She really looks different today, doesn't she?" the little angel said.

"That's what your words do with people's hearts, angel..." the blond angel brought a hand to her face and stroked her cheek. "That's what you've done with my heart thousands of times."

She looked at him with bright dark eyes and hugged him. "I love you, Andrew."

He kissed the top of her head and held her too. "I love you too, sweetheart. But now, let's go to work."

"Well, everybody is here, it's all set!," Andrew informed, after double checking the list containing all the tourists names to make sure that all of them were inside the bus. He folded the paper and kept it inside his pocket, but, before they entered the bus, Monica looked at him with some uncertainty:

"So we should be going by now?"

"Well, I suppose so, I guess we're not forgetting anything, are we?", he replied, now afraid that there would be something missing.

The Irish angel bit her lower lip, "Do you think we still have time for a cup of coffee?..." she had a pleading look in her eyes, which caused him to stare at her with an expression of amazement on his handsome face:

"Monica, the tourists are all sat inside the bus, together with our assignment, and the driver has already taken his position and started the vehicle..."

Blushing with some embarrassment, the Irish angel lowered her eyes, "I guess I'll have to wait a wee bit more, won't I?", she spoke shyly. Doing an extra effort not to laugh at her slight disappointment, he crossed his arms in front of his chest, with mock seriousness.

"I'm sorry to inform you, Miss Wings, but yes, you're gonna have to wait!"

"...Until we make our first stop?..." she was practically begging, such as a little child would beg for a candy, and he knew that he couldn't resist to that look.

"I'll think about it..."

She stared at him slightly bothered, but he ignored her pouting. "Now let's get going; Judith is about to call us at any moment!"

But, before they could move from where they were, the two angels heard a familiar voice right behind them:

"Wait a minute, babies..."

"Tess!," Monica wasted no time in holding the supervisor, "I'm so glad to see you!"

"I'm glad to see you too, Angel Girl!," she held her back, "And I hope Angel Boy here is taking a good care of you!"

"He is!," the Irish angel replied, staring at Andrew accusingly and with mock annoyance, which caused him to laugh:

"You can be sure I am, Tess!," he replied, teasingly.

"Good, cause I don't want any angel around here drinking gallons of coffee uncontrollably!"

Hearing that, Andrew stared at Monica and raised his eyebrows, visibly having a lot of fun with her irritation. Trying to ignore him, she turned to the oldest angel. "Are you here to tell us anything about our assignment?

"Well, in fact I am here to ask you something." Now the expression on Tess' face changed, and the oldest angel became serious.

"What is it?," the Irish angel wanted to know, not missing that sudden change.

The supervisor sighed deeply and reached out for their hands. "You're doing fine with your assignment, babies, you really are, from what I've heard. But I'd like to ask you to be careful while you're working..."

Hearing that, the two angels exchanged a surprised glance and Andrew frowned with concern. "Careful? Is there something we should know about this whole assignment that we haven't figured out yet, Tess?"

Realizing that her words had scared them, the supervisor gave a short smile. "No, not at all. You know as much as I do, Angel Boy. But... I just had a feeling that I should come here to see you before you left. I... I felt like holding you and telling you that, besides working on your assignment, you should take care of yourselves too."

"Oh, Tess, you were missing us, weren't you?," Monica said, with a warm smile, now fully understanding the oldest angel's unusual behavior.

"Well... ok, ok, I admit it!", she confessed, slightly bothered to have to confess that. Monica gave her another embrace, tighter than before.

"We miss you too, Tess, all the time!"

"I know you do, Angel Girl," she replied. When Monica pulled away, it was Andrew who held the oldest angel and kissed her cheek.

"We promise we'll be careful, don't we, Monica?"

"Oh, yes, you don't need to worry, Tess!"

"And you know something? When we get back from Baton Rouge, we can have dinner, just the three of us! What do you think about it?"

"I'll be waiting for you, babies!"

The trip to Baton Rouge was a very calm and pleasant one. The day was sunny and beautiful and the tourists were visibly having a great time. Besides, during the whole journey and after they had arrived the city, the angels observed the subtle changes in Judith's behavior. There was a certain light in her eyes and the smile on her face wasn't the fake one they had seen on the day they met her —it was far too clear that the conversation with the angels the night before was starting to produce some effect.

After lunch, the group of tourists took a rest in Old State Capitol Building, and Monica and Andrew took the chance to walk alone. Hand in hand, the angels strolled around the old monument, discussing about their assignment. "Have you noticed how different Judith looks today?," Monica asked, not missing the beauty that surrounded the place.

"Yes, you're right, Angel Girl. And the Father was so wise when He sent us two to help her. Yesterday, in that house, I could feel how lonely and miserable that woman was."

"That's true. Offering words of hope was the first step, but I guess we'll have to stay by her side for some more time, you know. From what I've noticed, Judith doesn't have any friends or family and we were the first ones in years who managed to cross that wall of sadness that she built up around herself. We can't let her down right now."

Andrew let go of her hand and wrapped his arm around her shoulders, "Well, I guess that, with such a wonderful angel like you beside her, it will be just a matter of time before she opens her heart to God!"

He felt her arm encircling his waist, "I wouldn't be able to do much without you, my friend!"

Smiling, the angels walked for another minute and stopped in front of a huge window to admire the view. "Besides, I feel so sorry for her, you know... I keep imagining what it would be like if... if one day I lost you or Tess, because, other than the Father, you two are like my world."

Andrew stood right in front of her and placed a strand of hair behind her ear:

"That would never ever happen, sweetie," he said, gently stroking her cheek. "Breaking the three of us apart is... unthinkable. And concerning me, I could also say that I'll be forever by your side, even if we're working on different assignments, 'cause I'm always carrying you inside my heart."

With a broad smile on her face, she covered his hand with hers. "So am I..."

Andrew leaned over to place a kiss on her cheek but, before he did so, they heard Judith's voice. "Monica, Andrew...", as they turned their heads to face her, the woman was quick to apologize. "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt you two... I'm terribly sorry!"

"It's ok, Judith, we were about to come back...", the Irish angel replied; neither she or Andrew could fully understand the woman's embarrassment.

"No, Monica, I'm really sorry; I know you two wanted to be alone and I know I've just interrupted a kiss in the only few free moments you had..."

The two angels looked at each other with surprise, now realizing what the woman was trying to say. "Oh, no, it's not what you're thinking, Judith...", the Irish angel spoke.

"Monica and I had something to talk and we came here because we knew that you wouldn't need us for a while," Andrew added.

"Are you sure? 'Cause I just had the impression that..."

"Judith, Andrew and I are friends," smiling Monica walked over to the woman and placed her hand on her shoulder. "And it was exactly about a new friend that we were talking about..."

Judith looked at both of them and also smiled, "You two have such a comforting presence... It feels good to have you near."

Hearing that, the two angels exchanged a look and Andrew winked at Monica. Then, they walked back to join the group of tourists.

More than one of the tourists would've certainly wanted the day to be longer, but night had arrived somehow earlier as some black clouds threatened to start raining in any minute. Now all the visitors, the guide and the two angels were in the bus on their way back to New Orleans. Judith had taken one of the seats on the front line and Andrew and Monica had done the same with the other two. The little Irish angel had chosen the window seat, but as soon as Andrew had seated beside her, she had leaned her head over his shoulder and in some minutes, she had drifted off to sleep.

"She's out like a light..." Judith commented in a low voice looking at the angel now cuddled in Andrew's embrace.

"Yeah..." He delicately placed some strands of her hair out of her face. "She had a really good time. Looked as excited as a little girl."

"You know? Sometimes I think she has managed to keep a kind of childish innocence though she's not a child anymore. I'm surprised, sometimes she seems to be a very mature woman, like the other day with the girl at the cathedral, but she surprised me today with the joy she walked around all the city... But I think you know this better than me..."

Andrew chuckled slightly and looked at Monica, his hand still stroking her cheek. "She's a box full of surprises, Judith, you'll see with the time..." He remained silent for some seconds, just staring at her, and finally he placed a delicate kiss on her forehead. "That's why I love her so much..." he added more for himself than for the woman.

"I want to apologize again for interrupting you at the Capitol. I know Monica said you're just friends, but I can see that's not true..." She stopped him when he wanted to argue. "I don't care for the job if you're wondering that. In fact I think you two make a beautiful couple."

"Judith," the blond angel explained, "what Monica told you is true, we're just friends, close friends if you want to say, so your apologies are not necessary, really."

"I'm glad you two came with me today," the woman said and leaned over to squeeze his forearm. "Even if you were so convincing yesterday, I'm still a little afraid of being here."

Andrew was about to respond, but the sound of the horn stopped him. What happened next seemed to happen for him, for Judith and the driver like in slow motion. The blond angel tightened his hold on Monica when the bus changed brusquely of direction and left the highway, stumbling with the rocks and the trunks in its way. The shouting of the passengers woke Monica up, and the last thing the blond angel saw were her terrified brown eyes looking at him before the bus hit a huge tree and the darkness surrounded the two angels.


	4. Chapter 3

CHAPTER 3

Due to the negligence of another driver, who had dangerously crossed to the other side, the bus where Monica, Andrew and Judith were had crashed violently on a huge tree and its front was completely destroyed. With the impact, some people hit their heads and lay unconscious; the other ones were in panic and some of them managed to get out of the vehicle by breaking the window panes, and terrified cries filled the silence of the night.

But those who had taken the front seats were in an even worse situation, as their seats had been ripped off the bus floor and were smashed against the front panel. It took the emergency services about 30 minutes to arrive at the place where the accident had happened and, as soon as they got there, the firemen started to remove the wounded from inside the vehicle and put them in stretchers. The paramedics completed their work, taking them to the ambulances and then to the nearby hospital.

Judith was one of these people, as, although she was sitting in the front line, the woman was thrown away from her seat with the collision and then fell on the floor unconscious due to the violence of the shock. But when the firemen finally removed her from inside the bus, the tourist guide opened her eyes and slowly regained consciousness, "... What... happened?"

"There was an accident, ma'am; can you say your name?"

"Judith Harris..."

"Ms. Harris we'll take you to the nearest hospital, here in Baton Rouge."

"Wait... what about the other passengers?"

"We're taking care of them right now, some have been already sent to the same hospital."

A sudden thought crossed the woman's mind, "...Monica and Andrew, the other two guides, they were sitting on the front line together with me, where are they? Are they alright?"

Noticing the worried frown in the fireman's face, she raised her head from the stretcher, and almost stood up had the man not stopped her.

"Oh, no! What's wrong? Where are they?"

"Please, lady, calm down!"

"Please, tell me what's going on, Monica and Andrew don't only work for me, they are my friends!"

"You're talking about the couple who was sitting beside you, right?" seeing her nodding, he kept on talking, "Well, my co-workers and I are doing our best... you see... they are stuck between the seats and both got serious injuries, especially the young lady..."

Hearing that piece of news, Judith's eyes grew wide and tears soon made their way down her face, and her heart was filled with great sorrow, "Oh, no! Please, tell me this is not happening! Not again!" she cried and shook her head in disbelief.

"Please try to stay calm, ma'am, you're hurt too, not as seriously as they are, but you cannot move!"

"Please, do everything you can to save them! Monica and Andrew are so dear to me! They are the closest thing to a family I have now!"

"We're trying to take them out, but it's kinda difficult, 'cause, besides the wounds, they're both unconscious... It'll take some time."

"Do everything you can for the two! I've already lost my daughter and my husband in an accident like this... I cannot lose them too..." she begged, causing the fireman to feel sorry for the woman.

"As I told you, we'll do everything we can to save them, I promise. Now let the paramedics take you away from here; you too need to receive the first aids..."

As the paramedics took the stretcher to the ambulance, Judith closed her eyes and prayed, "Oh God... if You're really that compassionate Father that Monica and Andrew told me You are, please let them be alright..."

About one hour and a half after the accident, an ambulance arrived to the ER door of the Baton Rouge General Medical Centre. Two stretchers were taken out in a hurry and doctors and nurses rushed up to them to get all the information the paramedics could give them. Judith had insisted on travelling with the two angels in the same ambulance and from the stretcher where she was, she could hear part of the reports.

The paramedic that was pushing Andrew said he had a broken arm and several bruises on his head, his blood pressure was 120/80 but what worried them the most was that he hadn't regained consciousness since the accident. The doctor ordered to take him to the exam room and to get ready the CT and the x-ray units to run tests on him.

But what Judith heard about Monica was much worse. She had a broken leg that had almost been ripped from her body and the lost of blood had her life in real danger. She was taken to an exam room just to test her blood type, but the doctor's order as soon as he saw her was to get an OR ready for her.

Judith was taken to another exam room even when she was begging to stay close to the angels. "Please!" she asked to a nurse. "Let me know what happens with them, please!"

"I will, ma'am, but now let us do our job, ok?" the young nurse said.

Judith's worries were answered soon as the doctor that was with Monica came to see her. "Are you Judith Harris?" he asked.

"Yes, I am! Please, doctor, tell me how are they!"

"The young man..."

"Andrew," Judith told him.

"Andrew. He has a broken arm and some bruises. His heart beat is strong and that's good, but the worst part is that he has a strong contusion in his head and that's what worries me the most: he's unconscious. Though he can breath by himself, we will tube him so we don't get a bad surprise in any minute."

"And Monica?"

The doctor remained silent for some seconds before he sighed deeply. "The young lady is in a very serious condition," he said looking straight at her eyes. "I won't hide the truth, I'm really worried for her. She needs to go to surgery right now, so I need a relative to sign the permission."

"I don't know anyone... I guess they live in New Orleans, where we work, but..."

"Do you know if this Andrew is her relative, her husband or boyfriend maybe?"

"I'm not sure... Can I sign the form?"

"I guess so..." he told her handling the paper. "We can't lose so much time."

"Will she be all right?" Judith was almost afraid to ask.

"If she gets through the surgery, she may have a chance..."

"She may have a chance?!" Fear was a pale name to the feeling that filled Judith's heart.

"She lost a lot of blood, her leg is dangerously hurt... But I promise we'll do everything we can to save her."

"Please," Judith's voice was trembling with the sobs. "There must be something you can do..."

"There's something you can do..." the doctor said squeezing her hand. "Pray."

10.30 p.m. Tess had checked her watch for the 100th time that night and she called for a waiter again. "No calls, no news?" the old angel asked.

"No, ma'am," the young man informed her. "None has called asking for you."

"T-thank you..." Tess murmured with a trembling voice.

He looked at her with compassion in his eyes. "Are you sure you were meeting them here?"

"Yes, I'm sure," the angel answered hardly controlling herself. "And my babies would never let me waiting. Something is wrong, I know it. Something happened to them..."

"Please, ma'am, calm down," the waiter told her taking a seat beside her and squeezing her arm reassuringly. "I will call 911 to try to know if there has been a report of accidents in the city, ok?"

"I'll really appreciate that..." Tess told him and saw him walking to the office.

The accident with the bus made the corridors of the ER be more crowded than the usual. Forty five people in the total had been injured and ten of them had a serious condition, including Monica and Andrew.

After examining Judith, the doctors came to the conclusion that she apparently hadn't had any severe injuries – just some concussions and a sprained wrist. Anyway, she had to go through some x-rays to confirm this diagnosis, and for the last half hour she had been waiting for the result of her exams sitting on a bed in the small hospital. During this time, images of the tragedy that had taken place nearly 4 hours ago came back to her memory over and over again: the noise of the horn, the passengers' cries and, most importantly, the look of sheer terror in the two angels' eyes.

Monica and Andrew were now in the ICU, and a group of doctors was working on them, doing everything they could to save their lives, as, at that very moment, both were in their human form, exposed to all sorts of dangers a normal person was, and if they weren't treated properly, they wouldn't resist to so many bad injuries suffered during the accident.

Sighing deeply, Judith closed her eyes for a brief moment and whispered, "... please, let them live... I beg you..."

"Judith Harris?" A sudden voice interrupted her prayers. It was the doctor who had examined her 30 minutes earlier.

"Yes?"

"I brought here the results of your x-rays," he announced, handing her the exams. "As I suspected, you didn't break any bone; there are some bruises and a sprained wrist. You'll feel your body aching for some days, but it'll get better soon."

"Thank you, doctor..." she answered, quietly and without much enthusiasm.

Realising her anguish and sadness, he placed his hand on her shoulder, "I've been to the ICU..."

Hearing that, Judith turned her eyes, filled with despair, to the man, "Did you hear anything about my friends? About Monica and Andrew? Are they better?"

Sighing deeply and somewhat sadly, he continued to speak, "Your friends, the couple the firemen rescued from the bus, are in a coma."

"Oh no! No!"

"I'm terribly sorry..."


	5. Chapter 4

CHAPTER 4

Judith was pacing absentmindedly along the corridor at the hospital feeling absolutely helpless. She longed for Andrew's comforting company and for Monica's sweet advises but they were both fighting for their human lives. Not knowing how, she ended up arriving to the chapel, the soft light coming from inside calling her to get in. She took a seat in the last bench suddenly feeling too tired after the long night without sleeping.

"Oh, there you are!" Judith didn't know how long she had been there when the doctor's voice took her out of her thoughts. "I've been looking for you."

"Any news?" the woman asked with a worried tone.

"Yes. The young lady, Monica, is out of surgery. She survived the operation, that gives us a good sign..."

"THANKS GOD!" Judith exclaimed automatically.

"Yet her condition is still very serious. I can't tell you she's out of danger."

"And Andrew?"

"He's out of the CT. There's a small bleeding in his brain that we hope will stop soon, that's why he hasn't regained conscience."

"There isn't anything else that you can do?"

The doctor sighed heavily before answering. "Not here. This is a small hospital, we don't normally have such serious emergencies. Even if what we've done is all that could've been done, I'd like to suggest to move them to somewhere else like the John Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore. If there isn't any sign of recovery in the next 48 hrs., they could handle it much better."

Judith remained silent for some minutes trying to fully understand what the doctor was saying. Finally she asked. "What if they don't wake up in 48 hrs.?"

The doctor saw all the worries in the woman's eyes and squeezed her arm. "Andrew would probably had to go to surgery. As for Monica..." he didn't want to lie to her but the truth was really hard. "She could stay unconscious for a long time..."

"What?!"

"That's why I tell you it's better for them to be somewhere else. If you really want to do what is the best for them, let us arrange the transfer."

Tears were crossing Judith's cheeks and the poor woman felt suddenly overwhelmed by the situation. Somehow she managed to whisper a 'ok' and saw the doctor nodding. "Do whatever it takes, please. Take them wherever you think they have to go," she added in a much secure tone of voice looking towards the high altar of the chapel and remembering that both Andrew and Monica shared a blind faith in what it represented.

Contrary to the peace Judith felt in the chapel, at those moments Tess could feel anything but unease in her heart. The waiter that had helped her before had stayed with her until hours pass closing time and had felt somehow guilty to let her all alone so upset, so he walked her to her red Cadillac. There they found Adam, who had stopped there when he recognised the car.

"Tess!" the angel of death exclaimed when he saw her. "I was trying to figure out where you could be at this hour! I saw the car! What's happening?"

"Is this a friend of yours, ma'am?" the waiter asked Tess.

"Yes, baby, thank you," she murmured through her worried voice.

"Ok, then I leave you in good hands. I hope you find your friends. Good luck."

"God bless you, baby," the older angel told him.

"Where are Andrew and Monica, Tess?" Adam asked with growing anguish.

"I wish I knew, Adam. I was supposed to meet them here six hours ago but they never showed!" the supervisor said barely containing her tears.

"That's not possible! They would never let you waiting!"

"But they did, and something is telling me they are in big trouble! Maybe they had an accident!"

"I hadn't been called to any accident, Tess..." Adam tried to calm her.

"What else could stop them then?"

Seeing she was hardly fighting back tears, the angel of death hugged her tightly. "Ok, ok, Tess, don't worry. We'll look for them and we'll find them, you'll see. Let's start with hospitals, ok?" Tess nodded. "But this time let me drive. You're too nervous."

Tess didn't argue and handed him the keys. Adam smiled at seeing the small angel key ring Monica had given her supervisor. "My angel girl gave it to me," the dark skinned angel explained. "They have to be alright, otherwise I wouldn't bear if..."

"Trust the Father, Tess. He'll take care of them," Adam assured her. "Let's go."

The ambulance stopped in front of the Methodist Hospital in Houston bringing Andrew and Monica lying side by side in two stretchers, with Judith right next to them, and the paramedics opened the back door and quickly removed them out of the vehicle, crossing the building gates. Due to their critical condition, the doctors had decided to transfer the angels to a nearer hospital than the one in Baltimore they had chosen first. All this time, the tourist guide had remained together with the couple she had become so fond of in a matter of days.

The stretchers were carried along the corridors and up to the second floor, where a doctor was already waiting for them and came towards the group as soon as he saw them coming, "I'm doctor Richard Taylor, I believe you were together with them when the accident happened," he said, walking together with them.

"Yes, I'm Judith Harris, Monica and Andrew work for me and they're also my friends."

"I'm glad they were moved to Houston, I guess we can take better care of them here than in Baton Rouge."

"Oh, please, doctor Taylor, they are the only family I have!"

"We'll do everything we can, Mrs Harris, I promise you," he replied, feeling sorry for the poor woman, and the paramedics crossed the ICU gates.

She stopped walking and turned an anguished face to the man, "Do I need to sign any paper? Please, tell me now, I can do anything you want me to as long as you can treat my friends..." she said, with sad tears in her eyes and a look of distress to see Andrew and Monica in such condition.

"My team and I will take care of your friends now and, in this mean time, the hospital secretary will talk to you about the procedures, ok?" He placed a supportive hand on her shoulder and, a second later, disappeared through the ICU doors.

A secretary was already near them and, as soon as the doctor moved away, she approached Judith. "I'll need your help, Mrs Harris. I have to gather as much information as possible. Tell me, do they have any relatives? Have they been informed about the accident?"

"I don't know about their families... but if there are any relatives they haven't been informed about it."

"Are they married?"

"No, they're not married, but they're very close to each other, they probably know each other's relatives."

"Well, we need to locate the families, what are their full names?" the secretary asked; she and Judith moved to an office and the woman started to type on the computer.

"Well... all I have are their tourist guides IDs..." she looked inside her bag and took the two small cards that the angels had pinned in their T-shirts, containing nothing but their first (and only) names.

"Well... that's not much, Mrs Harris. Don't you have an address or a phone number?"

"I'll phone my assistant, in my office. She has access to the employees' information, it'll be just a minute."

Judith phoned Mabel and, some time later, she turned off the phone with a worried expression on her face.

"Mrs Harris?" the hospital secretary called, noticing all her concern, "Did you manage to find their address?"

"No... That's so strange... My assistant couldn't find anything about Monica and Andrew except their first names! She even phoned the agency that sent them and they don't have any information about the two either..."

"Humm... that's really strange. But we still need a person to sign the papers and authorise any necessary medical procedure."

"Well, I'm their only friend now and I'm also their boss, I will be responsible for Monica and Andrew; I'll take care of them!"

Two days had passed since the angels had arrived at the Methodist and, during all this time, Judith remained at their side, being permanently informed about their condition and all the procedures they had to go through.

Since she had arrived there, the tourist guide had noticed that there was a small chapel inside the hospital building and, on that rainy morning, after having breakfast, she decided to enter the place and pray for the angels' recovery.

When she returned to the second floor, the doctor who was treating Monica and Andrew came to speak to her, "Good morning, Mrs Harris..."

"Doctor Taylor? What is it? How are they?"

"Please, calm down... Monica's condition remains the same, we have to wait to see how she reacts to the treatment, and pray for her. But I have good news for you: the young man, Andrew, got out of the coma and is awake right now."

Hearing that, Judith felt her heart pounding loudly in her chest and a smile, mixed with some tears, appeared in her face, "Oh my God! He's... he's awake!!! Can I see him? Please, doctor, let me see him?"

"Sure, come this way, please."

Andrew was lying on the bed, with his right arm immobilised and with some bandages on his face. He had a distant look in his eyes, as if trying to search for something that was not there; as if he was completely lost. A light knock on the door took him out of his reverie and Judith entered the room together with the doctor.

"I have here your exams," doctor Taylor said, coming closer to the bed "You hurt your arm, son, and have several bruises and cuts on your body. But getting out of the coma after two days was the best news we could ever have. We'll run more tests, but I guess the odds are that you'll have a fine recovery!"

The blond angel listened to the news in silence and the man left the room. Only then, Judith came closer to the bed, with emotion evident in her teary eyes, "Hello, Andrew. I'm so happy that you got out of the coma and that you're getting better now! Doctor Taylor is right: that's the best news I could've received."

He turned his eyes to the woman and swallowed hard, searching for the right words. Judith took his good hand and squeezed it, "I prayed so much for you and Monica... And I'm sure she'll recover too, you'll see. Soon, you will be together again, smiling and holding each other, like you always do, like I love seeing you both!"

Andrew had an anguished expression on his face and, after processing the woman's words, he nodded his head, "Thank you for praying..."

"Your and Monica's healing are all that matters now; I'm sure God is taking care of you two!"

"... may I ask you something?..." the blond angel spoke, his voice slightly low.

"Sure! What is it?"

"...What's your name?"

Hearing that question, Judith frowned with concern, "What? What do you mean?"

"I... I don't have any memory of what happened... I know there was an accident but... but I can't remember anything at all... I can't even remember my name..."


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter 5 

Judith refused to believe what Andrew was telling her: he didn't remember anything of his previous life, neither what he did nor where he came from, not even his name! She knew she was looking at him in surprise but she also knew the angel's face was 10 times more scared and surprised. She tried to control herself as an inner voice told her she wouldn't help him by showing him her fear. "Your name is Andrew," Judith began. "You work with me and with Monica, the woman that is in the next room. We're tourist guides."

"Why am I here? I mean, I remember an accident but..." he asked.

The woman took his hand again as if he was her son. "We were coming back from Baton Rouge. A car crossed in front of our bus. Monica and you were seriously wounded. The doctors moved you here from Baton Rouge a couple of days ago. Thanks God you're awake!"

Andrew remained silent for some minutes, trying to gather all the information he had been given. He kept on thinking about something in particular: Monica, his other co-worker. Why couldn't he remember her face? Why couldn't he remember anything about her and yet, after hearing her name, he couldn't take her out of his mind? He felt grateful with Judith, yet he would've liked she could tell him everything he needed to know at that moment. He finally decided to ask more. "You say we work with another woman..."

"Monica, yes."

"Monica..." he murmured. "And she's also here?"

"Yes. You two were seated together."

"And how is she?"

Judith sighed deeply and her eyes immediately showed a big concern. "Her condition is critical. She hasn't regained consciousness since the accident."

Judith's words felt like a blow for the blond angel. He may not remember her face, but he knew he cared for her. He leaned heavily against his pillow and remained silent again. Sensing his distress, Judith tried to reassure him. "We have to pray, Andrew. That's what she'd tell us to do." He nodded and looked away, closing his eyes to avoid the strange feeling of desperation in his heart. "I'll leave you to rest," the woman told him patting his hand. "Try to sleep. I'll go have something for lunch, ok?"

Andrew was trying to do what Judith and the doctor had told him to do, but as much as he tried to keep his eyes closed, he couldn't sleep. The doctor had come to check on him and decided to take out all the machines and even the IV. After eating a little bit of Jell-O, they had given him a pill for the pain, so his arm and his head didn't hurt much. He finally gave up in his effort to sleep and he sit up slowly in his bed. He felt a little dizzy when he stood up and waited a little until the feeling passed. He started to walk slowly towards the door. He opened it carefully but he found the corridor nearly empty. Helping himself with the wall, he walked until Monica's door. For a minute, he looked at her through the window at the side and then he decided to get in.

He placed a chair at the side of her bed where he could reach her hand and her face. He looked at her for long minutes, drinking in her pale features, feeling he loved to stroke her cheeks and her long hair. She looked so lifeless lying there in silent, a peaceful expression in her face as if she was only sleeping. Carefully he reached for her hand, a very familiar feeling running through his veins with the contact of her skin. He didn't know how long he sat there, running his thumb over her small, chilled hand. How he wanted to know everything about this small woman he couldn't take out of his mind!

When he finally started to feel tired, he lifted her hand to his lips to kiss it slightly and then placed it over the bed. He stood up and reached for her head to take some strands of her hair off her face. "Be strong for me, angel girl," he murmured and then thought about his words. Why had he called her like that? "Angel girl"... The two words sounded so familiar for him. He bent down painfully to kiss her forehead. He decided he would pray for her to wake up soon... Maybe she could tell him all about their relationship, but especially he wanted to have time to spend with her, time to figure out why his heart felt so complete knowing she existed.

Tess and Adam entered the small hospital in Baton Rouge, where the angels had been taken to right after the accident, and, with a permanent anguished expression on her face, the supervisor rushed to the counter, "Please, we need some information... We're looking for 2 friends, they disappeared and I believe there must've been an accident..."

"What are their names?" the attendant asked.

"Monica and Andrew..."

"And surnames?"

"Well... I'm sure that they must have been registered with their first names..."

The woman at the counter patiently looked for the 2 names in a huge patients list and finally found them, "Oh, here they are, Monica and Andrew... Yes, they were involved in a bus accident..." 

Tess and Adam looked at each other now more scaried than never, but the angel of death was quick to calm her down, "Take at ease Tess; if the worst had happened, I would've known..."

"Oh Father, I knew there was something wrong! And where are they? Can we see them?"

"No, I'm sorry, but they were transferred to Baltimore; there's a bigger hospital there."

The two angels rushed to Baltimore, not knowing that they had been given the wrong information. In fact, their friends had been moved to the Methodist Hospital, in Houston, as, due to their critical condition, the doctors had decided to transfer the angels to a nearer hospital.

Consequently, when they arrived at Baltimore, Tess and Adam had another awful surprise, being informed that there were no patients named Monica and Andrew there.

Crying desperately, Tess leaned on Adam's shoulder, without knowing what to do.

"Please, be calm Tess. Wherever they are, don't forget that the Father is with them; Monica and Andrew are never alone."

Still taken aback with the fact that he had no memory of his previous life, Andrew didn't speak much on the next morning after he had regained consciousness. A turmoil of different thoughts was going on his mind and the anguished expression on his face could show all his worry about his future, about what he had to face ahead.

On that afternoon, he had been taken to have a new series of X rays of his arm and after they had finally finished, the blond angel returned to his room. It was then that he saw a doctor running to Monica's room. Even without remembering who that pretty auburn lady was, he felt a sudden and immediate sensation of panic creeping over him. "Excuse me, sir, what's going on?"

The man stopped running for a brief moment, "It's the lady at the end of the corridor... she's getting worse! I'm afraid we're gonna lose her!" the doctor answered, and went ahead, disappearing through Monica's bedroom door.

With great sadness filling his heart, the blond angel went into the same direction and stood by the same door, watching through the glass as a group of doctors and nurses worked on the woman who, according to Judith, was his best and dearest friend.

"God, please, don't let her die... Please, take care of her... I... I don't remember who she is but my heart is telling me she's very important to me and it's not because Judith told me so; I can feel it..." he placed the palm of his hand against the window glass and sighed deeply; his sad green eyes never moved away from Monica's figure lying on the bed. One of the nurses in the group that was surrounding the bed closed a curtain, blocking his vision. Andrew moved away from the window and gave a few steps along the corridor, once again, loneliness and despair filling his soul.

The blond angel remained in that corridor for nearly an hour, silently praying for Monica's recovery, when the same doctor he had spoken to came out of the room.

"Doctor, please, how is she?"

The expression on the man's face was one of concern. "Well... we've managed to stabilize her again. But now all we can do is monitor her and wait; the next 24 hours will be crucial for her."

Noticing the great sorrow in the angel's eyes, he placed his hand on Andrew's shoulder sympathetically, "I can tell how much you love her, son. Believe me, the best you can do is pray for her, ask God to help us, doctors, to save her life!"

Andrew could tell the man he was wrong, that he had no memory of his previous life and that he didn't remember who the young woman was. But something inside of him stopped the angel from saying so, as if, somehow, the doctor's words were the most absolute truth, and all he could do was nod his head, "I will sir... I'll pray for her with all the faith inside my heart..."

As the man went away, Andrew walked over up to the window in Monica's room and watched as the nurses finished to check the equipment that kept her alive. "Father, please, answer to my prayers.... I... I feel so sad and afraid... I'm terrified with the possibility of losing her..."


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Andrew was wondering if there would be one day again when he could stop feeling as worried as he was feeling since the moment he had regained consciousness. Once again, his nurse had made him go back to bed and he was rolling over and over, wanting more than anything to get up and go back to Monica's window. It had been more than three hours since the doctor had advised him to pray for his friend but he wanted to do more. Be by her side. Take her hand. Look at her trying to remember something. Being away was killing him: he felt he would wake up any minute and find himself completely alone, no memories at all, not even Monica lying on a bed as a very thin thread telling him something about his past.

His patience was about to be over when the night shift nurse came in, thermometer in one hand and a rattling bottle of pills on the other. "Hello, handsome!" she greeted him. "How are you feeling?" But before the blond angel could answer, she had put the thermometer in his mouth and was taking his pulse. "You're doing great, baby! You'll be released soon and..."

Andrew tried to sigh to stop listening to her chatting. When she finally took the thermometer out of his mouth, he asked immediately, "Do you know something about Monica?"

"Monica?" the nurse turned to see him as if she couldn't believe he had in fact interrupted her.

"Yes, Monica, the woman on the next room!" he said somewhat exasperatedly.

"Oh, you mean, the girl that was with you on the accident!"

"YES!"

"I understand she got worse in the afternoon but they managed to stabilize her."

"Yes! And how is she now?!" the blond angel felt his patience growing weaker and weaker.

"Hum... Let's see..." the woman said taking out a little note pad. "The next 24 hours will be critical for her... But I checked on her before and she's fighting for her life. She must be really brave!"

"Yes, she is..." he replied almost automatically.

Something in his green eyes moved the nurse's heart and for the first time, she paid attention at the angel's expression when talking about Monica. "Is she your girlfriend?"

"N-no..." he replied in surprise.

"Have you known her for a long time?"

"Yeah..." He didn't know for sure but he said what he felt. He was distractedly looking at his hands, and his desperate expression did the nurse.

"You're doing it well. Do you want to see her?"

Andrew lifted his head immediately and a wide smile appeared on his face. "Yes!" he said standing up quickly.

He felt his heart beating faster when he saw her, paler than before, more machines attached to her small body. He took a chair and placed it right to the bed, so he could take her hand as he had done before.

"Hum... I'll be back later, ok?" the nurse said feeling like an intruder.

Andrew didn't reply. He was already lost in thought, his hands covering Monica's and trying to warm them up. "God, she can't die..." he murmured. "I need her... Please, let her be alright." He took her hand to his lips carefully, trying not to move her IV. "Monica, be strong for me, baby," he kept on talking, "I want to see your eyes open again and hear your laughter. I..." he swallowed hard, "I can't remember anything about us, but I do know I like to hear you laughing and seeing you smiling. I will be absolutely lost if you're gone, angel girl. I need you to get my life back."

A couple of hours later, the nurse came back to Andrew's room and found it empty. She closed the door wondering where he could be, and she walked to Monica's. She smiled at the scene in front of her eyes: Andrew was deeply asleep, his broken arm carefully placed over the bed, his head resting on his cast, his other hand still holding Monica's.

Something in the monitor called the nurse attention: the little angel's heartbeat was more regular now... and stronger. The woman smiled again: she had more chances now to be fine, it was as if Andrew's presence had in fact given her strength to fight for her life. She decided not to wake him up, so she took a blanket out of the closet and covered him, her heart moved by the sight of such a beautiful scene.

Next morning, Judith came back form New Orleans and walked through the corridor towards Andrew's room and she found him playing distractedly with his breakfast. "How are you feeling, Andrew?" she greeted trying to sound cheerful. "I've brought some clothes for you and Monica. I guess you'll want to wear something more than these gowns... Everyone from the agency send you two their best wishes. They want you back as soon as possible."

"Yeah..." the blond angel replied distractedly. "I want to go back too."

"What happened, Andrew? You look too worried..."

"It's Monica..." he said. "She got worse yesterday and..."

"OH, NO!" the woman exclaimed covering her mouth. "Why nobody called? How is she?!"

"She's better now... They stabilized her yesterday night. They said the following 24 hours would be especially critical but this morning she was better. Her heartbeat was stronger..."

"Thanks God! What did the doctor said? Is there something they can do? Or what can we do?"

"What they had told us to do since the beginning, Judith..." he said reaching for her hand and looking at her with his worried green eyes. "Pray."

"Please, Father, guide my steps to Monica and Andrew... They need me right now, I can't imagine how lonely and abandoned they must be feeling..." Tess prayed. She was waiting for Adam miserably leaning on the wheel of her Cadillac, with some tears, now familiar to the angel, falling from her eyes.

"Tess, please, try to stay calm," the angel of death said, meeting her a minute later.

"Did you find anything, Adam? Did you talk to the other angels of death?"

"They don't know anything about Andrew either and they have no idea where he can be."

"So I'll tell you what: we'll go back to New Orleans and continue to search..."

"I'm sorry Tess, but I cannot go with you. I have an assignment in 5 minutes. I just came here to tell you that..."

"So I'm going all by myself, I..." the supervisor stopped talking when she heard a silent message and her face turned into a more desperate one, "Oh no, Father! You cannot ask me that! I need to find my babies first!"

"What is it?" Adam wanted to know.

"He wants me to go on another assignment too!" she spoke, with distress.

He placed a supportive hand over her shoulder. "Tess, you know that if He's telling you to do it, then you have to. Remember that He always has a greater plan; bigger than you and I can imagine..."

Andrew was in his room, lost in his thoughts. Although he couldn't remember a single thing about what had happened before the accident, in his heart the care and worry for the beautiful auburn lady who was fighting for her life in the ICU seemed to remain the same. A sudden knock on the door took him out of his reverie; it was one of the nurses.

"Excuse me, Andrew. I've looked for Ms. Harris but I couldn't find her..."

"Judith left for some time, but she'll come back soon... What is it?"

"It's the lady at the other room, Monica..."

Andrew felt his heart pounding loudly in his chest and stood up, "What is it? What... what happened?"

Noticing the worry and tension on his face, the woman smiled, "Oh, don't worry; in fact I bring you good news – a miracle if you prefer... Monica is out of the coma."

A flood of relief filled his heart and his soul with that piece of news and, for the first time since he had woken up in that hospital, the blond angel smiled, "Really?"

"Yes! And more, she woke up some minutes ago."

"Can – can I see her?" he spoke, hardly managing to control his happiness.

"Sure, come with me!"

Monica was sitting on her bed, staring outside through the window, with her brown eyes filled with great sadness, and it was far too clear that she was feeling completely lost and afraid. Tears were about to roll down on her face when somebody knocked on the door; she took a deep breath and tried to put her pain aside for some instants.

"Come in..."

The door was opened and she saw a tall, blond man standing there, with some bandages on his forehead and his arm in plaster.

"Hi..." Andrew greeted, without being sure of what to say.

"Hullo..." she replied, equally wordless.

"I... I'm glad you're out of the coma; I've been praying for you since I woke up... we were together in the bus..."

"I see..." she kept on staring at him with the same sad and tearful expression on her face.

He gave a few steps towards her. "They... they said that we are friends, that we work together with Judith at the travel agency and..." he stopped abruptly as she suddenly burst into tears, which left him not only moved but deeply scared.

Andrew was standing before her in a matter of seconds and didn't waste another moment in coming closer to her bed and taking her small hand into his. "Monica? Monica, what... what is it? Are you feeling some kind of pain? Do you want me to call the nurse?"

Sobbing, she quickly shook her head but was unable to control her tears immediately.

"Please... try to keep calm... take a deep breath... I talked to the nurse, you'll recover from the accident, the worst is gone now!" he said.

Only a long minute later, did she manage to calm down. "I'm... I'm sorry..."

"You have nothing to be sorry; please, just try to calm down..." he gently wiped away some tears from her face and filled a cup of water, "Here, drink this..."

Still sniffling, Monica drank some of it and, once again, stared blankly at him, "Thank you..."

"Are you sure you don't want me to call a nurse? You're... you're crying..."

"I... I don't remember what happened..."

"What... What do you mean?"

A single tear fell from her eye, "I don't know how I came to this hospital... they said there was an accident... they said that my friends were in it but... I can't remember any accident... I can't remember any friend..." she sobbed and finally spoke the words he was already fearing, "...I don't know who I am..."

Monica started to cry again, and, for an instant, Andrew hated the fact that one of his arms was immobilized, stopping him from holding her tightly in a comforting embrace. Deeply moved with her sorrow, and having the exact idea of how she was feeling, Andrew released her hand and placed his palm on her cheek. "I know how you're feeling, believe me, but, please, don't be scared, Monica! You're not alone, I promise you! There's this lady, Judith Harris, she was desperate with the possibility of losing you; we both were! We've been praying for you so much and now that you're awake and the doctors said you're gonna be alright, you have no idea of how happy I am and I'm sure that Judith will be equally happy when she gets back! And that's the most important right now!"

His words seemed to have some effect because she managed to control her tears again. "What's your name?"

"I... I'm Andrew."

"We knew each other before the accident?"

"Yes..."

"I... I don't have any memory of what happened or before... could you please tell me what happened?"

He sighed deeply frustrated with the fact that he couldn't do what she was asking him. The blond angel took a seat on the chair next to her bed and, once again, took her hand into one of his own. "Monica, what I know is that there was an accident and you and I were sitting next to each other, in the front seats of the bus, together with Judith. We are tourist guides and work for her."

She slowly nodded her head. "What about our family?"

"That's... that's the problem... the collision was too strong, you and I were the most wounded in the accident... I had a concussion in my head and was in a coma for some days..." he took a deep breath and continued to speak, "Like you, I... I don't remember what happened before..."

The Irish angel's brown eyes grew wide. "What?"

"I lost my memory too, Monica. All I know is what I've been told here in the hospital when I woke up some days ago."

Staring at him in surprise and amazement, Monica straightened herself in bed, which wasn't easy for her, as her leg was immobilized. "You mean you don't remember anything?"

"No... The only memory I have is waking up here, in this hospital, some days ago..."

The look in her eyes was one of sadness, and, for an instant, she seemed to forget about her own despair; her kind and compassionate heart already filled with worry for that complete 'strange'. "I'm terribly sorry..."

"I've talked to the doctor and he said that the trauma of what happened could appear in many different ways. Some people can't speak, others are afraid of getting into a bus or in any vehicle again, and others delete everything that happened from their minds."

"I wouldn't mind having no memory of a terrible accident but to wake up not knowing who I am is something... very frightening..."

Andrew brushed some strands of hair off her face. "But the doctors also said that the trauma would be over. Some people get over it in some days, others need more time, but it always has a cure!"

"I hope it doesn't take too long..."

"I'm sure that our memory will come back when we least expect. And, in this meantime, Judith and I will stand by you, you can be sure of that."

His last words were so comforting and reassuring that, even with her eyes filled with tears, the Irish angel managed a slight smile. "Thank you... Andrew..." she said, gratefully.

Pleased with the effect of his words, he returned the smile. "You're more than welcome, Monica."


	8. Chapter 7

CHAPTER 7

"Well, well, let's see what we have here..." the doctor said walking towards Monica's bed. Andrew and Judith were with her, the blond angel seated on a chair right beside her bed. When she saw the doctor looking to his notes, the little angel turned to see Andrew, who immediately held her hand reassuringly. "It seems you're doing just fine, Monica... You may leave the ICU as soon as today in the afternoon!"

Both Monica and Andrew sighed in relief and smiled at each other.

"I was heading to your room too, son," he now addressed to Andrew. "You too are doing fine. The last CT doesn't show any sign of the bleeding and I can send you to a regular room... I wouldn't like to have you released right now, just for a precaution, you know? We'll have your arm out of the cast in a few days, but you'll have to start with physical therapy soon if you want to have all your movements back."

"Ok, I'm ready!" the blond angel said feeling really happy.

"Back to you, little lady," he said looking again to Monica, "you will have to go to physical therapy soon too, especially for you leg. Now, I have to warn you: it will be painful..."

Andrew felt Monica tightening her hold on his hand and looked at her, but her words didn't show the fear he had felt from her. "I'm ready too, doctor. I don't care about the pain. All I want is to be able to get out of this bed soon..."

"And we'll help you, angel girl. I'll do everything you need..." Andrew said with a light of conviction in his green eyes.

Judith and the doctor smiled at hearing him and at seeing the tender way Monica was looking at him. "It's good to see your spirits so high 'cause you'll need all your strength, you'll see..." the doctor said writing something more on their files. "Right now, I'll see you to be moved to normal rooms today."

"Er... doctor?" Andrew asked. "Is there any chance we could be in one? I mean share it? I... I think it would be easy for us to take care of Monica, don't you think, Judith?" he continued realising his request was somewhat strange.

"You mean to put you both in one room?" the doctor replied in surprise. "It's not common..."

"Oh, doctor... Is there a way to do it?" Judith interceded. "Andrew is right... It would be easier for me to take care of them if they are together..."

The doctor turned to see Monica again and her brown eyes had such a hopeful expression that he couldn't help but accept. "All right... I'll see what I can do..." and the wide smile in the little angel's face was all he wanted for reply.

A couple of days later, Judith entered the branch of a local newspaper in New Orleans holding a small paper in her hands and headed to the counter. "Excuse me, good morning, dear. I'd like to put this announcement on tomorrow's newspaper..."

The attendant took the paper in her hands and read it aloud. i"A young lady named Monica and her friend, Andrew, both tourist guides at Orion Travels, are at the Methodist Hospital in Houston. Please, any member of the family or friend, contact Judith Harris, on the following numbers."/i. Then she read the 3 telephone numbers, of Judith's office and of her house and cell phone. "So how many days would you like it to be published?"

"Well, I'm not really sure. Let's leave it for a month initially and wait to see if anybody answers to that. I do trust that someone will show up to help those two."

After leaving the newspaper branch, Judith went to the agency that had sent her Monica and Andrew to work for her and spent the rest of the morning searching on their files, trying to get some information about her two new friends, but, after a 3 hour search, she came to the conclusion that there was no record about them.

"That's so strange... They seem to have just come into my life totally out of the blue, with no past, no last name, no relatives; nothing that could tell me anything about them other than what I already know..."

"Well, maybe you should be careful, madam. They could be criminals or something like that!" the man who helped her to do the search spoke.

She stared at him with a shocked expression on her face, "Oh no! Of course they aren't! That's absurd! Although I don't know very much about them, there's something about Monica and Andrew that makes me feel... in peace with myself..." a slight smile formed on her lips. "And I do like them! I like them very much, as if they were my own family now. And I'll do everything I can to help my friends!"

A month had passed since the angels had started to recover from the accident, and they were making progress each and every day, surprising Judith and even the doctors, who had never seen so seriously wounded patients getting better so fast.

"Well, Monica, Andrew, that's all for today!" the physiotherapist announced, after one more therapy session had finished. Both angels looked at each other with a slight smile upon their faces and heaved a sigh of relief, as, although it was necessary, they used to get a bit tired, especially Monica, who was now walking with the help of a cane.

As he always did, Andrew was quick to take Monica by the hand and help her to sit down. "Come, Monica, take a seat and rest for a while before we get back to our room," he said, carefully placing her on the chair and with a constant protective look in his eyes.

However, Monica looked back at him with a hint of indecision upon her meek face, "Well... as a matter of fact... I... I guess I don't fell like going back to our room right now, you know..."

The blond angel nodded his head understandingly: his compassionate heart was already feeling what was happening to his dearest friend, "You're tired of keeping all locked in there, aren't you, angel girl? He asked, placing his hand on the side of her head and gently stroking her hair.

That term of endearment, as well as that small tender gesture, caused the Irish angel to smile cheerfully at him, and she nodded her head, "I guess that's what happens when people stay together practically all day long during so much time: you're starting to guess what I'm thinking!"

Also smiling, he squeezed her hand again and, with a pensive expression on his face, he turned to the physiotherapist, "Doctor, would it be ok if... if we took a short walk around the hospital?"

Hearing that, the man frowned and didn't seem all too pleased with his suggestion, "Well..."

"I promise we won't go far; maybe only until the cafeteria!" Andrew was quick to say; the kind and warm hearted auburn lady he had already become so fond of deserved to breathe some fresh air and see the sun and he was decided to make that possible. "And I'll be watching over Monica all the time, I won't let anything happen to her, you have my word, sir!" the blond angel concluded.

And the protective tone in his voice, as well as the care he had been giving to the little Irish angel during all the time they had been there managed to convince the doctor that there wasn't anybody in this entire world who could take care of Monica better than Andrew.

"Ok, then; I trust you, son!"

The smile and the spark of joy in Monica's face, as if she was a little girl who had just been allowed to take a walk in the park, assured them both that that was indeed an excellent idea.

"Thanks, doctor! I'll take care of her and I promise I'll bring her safe and sound!", he spoke, once again stroking softly her auburn hair.

Monica took a deep breath when she felt the fresh air hitting her face. It had been too long since she had been in the outside and she missed the feeling of the sun on her skin. Andrew looked at her and her smile reached his heart filling it with a joy that he had come to associate just with her. He had seen her fighting tears of pain with every session of therapy, and during one month now he had admired the strength she had showed and the determination to walk normally again. After that month too, he had come to love to see her smiling and to hear her giggling or laughing, and he had secretly promised to himself that he'd do everything to make her smile and laugh as much as possible. He spent a long minute contemplating her face under the sun realising, as he had done since he had first seen her on the bed in the ICU, how beautiful she was. Finally he circled her waist with his good arm and leaded her to a table in the open air part of the cafeteria.

"Thank you, Andrew," she said reaching for his hand once they were seated. "You can't imagine how wonderful it feels to smell fresh air after so long!"

He took her hand to his lips and kissed it softly. "Anytime, sweetie, you know that... Do you want to take something?"

"A cup of coffee would be lovely!" she replied quickly, not thinking if she really liked coffee or not.

"Cream and sugar, right? In a minute!" he answered. But when he was waiting for the beverages, he started to think about how he had known that...

"Oh, my! It's delicious!" she exclaimed after she had taken the first sip. "It's been so long!"

"Monica..." Andrew asked somehow hesitant, "how did you know you like coffee?"

The Irish angel thought a second. "I don't know... I just know it... How did you know I like it with cream and sugar, huh?"

"I just knew it!" he replied in surprise. After a minute of silence, he reached for her hand again and murmured, "Sometimes I wish I could remember everything about you... about us."

Monica bent her head down and answered. "Me too. Sometimes I feel so helpless..." she was stroking his arm and when he covered her hand and looked at her, she felt he had done that before...

The environmental music started a song that sounded familiar for them... "Sunrise, sunset..." Andrew murmured. "May I have this dance?" he joked coming closer to her ear.

"Sure..." she said offering him her hand. He took it as if they could in fact get up and dance... "We danced it before..." she said with a secure tone.

"In a wedding..." he offered. "The groom's name was Benjamin!"

"A friend of yours?" she asked. "You invited me... you introduced me to him!"

"Oh, there you are!" Judith said joining them. "I went to the room and to the therapy ward. The doctor told me you were here! Everyone sends their best wishes from the office! What?" she finally asked at their expressions.

"Judith... you hear that song?" Andrew asked.

" 'Sunrise, sunset'? Yeah, why?"

"Andrew and I danced it before! In a wedding!" Monica explained excitedly.

"Yeah, for sure!" Judith replied kind of matter-of-factly.

"How do you know?" the blond angel asked.

"You two know each other very well, you've been together for years! It's not too difficult!" the woman explained.

"We do?" Andrew said and turned to see Monica. In her sweet face, he found what he knew was in his own face: an urgent need to know who they were, and more important, what they were to each other.


	9. Chapter 8

CHAPTER 8

Judith was pacing nervously along the room under the attentive look of Andrew and Monica. The woman was checking her watch continuously... She was supposed to take a plane in less than one hour and a half to go back to New Orleans for a couple of days, and the doctor had asked her to stay to have a serious talking about the angels.

"Judith, I can talk to the doctor and call you later if you want," Andrew suggested.

"Thanks, Andrew, but I want to be sure everything's all right!"

"Sorry for the delay," the doctor getting into the room as if in a cue. "But I have good news for you, pal. You're ready to be released right now."

Andrew took a deep breath but he didn't show a special happiness. Instead he turned to see Monica, and he saw the little apprehension in her brown eyes.

"What an interesting manifestation of joy!" the doctor joked. "After nearly two months here, I thought you'd be wanting to run out of here!"

"But... what about Monica?" the blond angel said.

"I'm sorry, but she can't go out yet... We have to run the tests again and I can't do it in advance."

"Doctor, we have a problem here... I'm travelling to New Orleans in about an hour and..." Judith said.

"Ma'am, believe me, I won't release her without being sure that she's perfectly fine..."

"Judith, don't worry... I'll stay, I can stay alone..." the little angel finally spoke.

"NO!" both Andrew and Judith exclaimed at the same time.

"Listen," the blond angel said after looking at Monica lowering her head sadly, "I'll stay here with you... I can take care of everything here while Judith goes to New Orleans."

Monica lifted her face to meet his eyes and felt an incredible and unexplainable joy at the deep concern she saw in his expression. "R-really?"

Andrew's heart beat harder at the childlike tone in her voice. "Of course, sweetie. Do you really think I could leave you alone? Don't you think I'd be worrying to death knowing you're here alone?" he had taken a seat on her bed and was stroking her cheek lovingly.

She felt so thankful with his offer that she couldn't think about any other thing but to throw herself in his arms, hugging him tightly. "Thank you, Andrew," she murmured sobbing quietly.

"Hey, no tears here!" he said pulling apart from his embrace and cleaning her tears. "No if I'm here to stop them to fall from those beautiful eyes of yours!"

Judith and the doctor had just witnessed the tender exchange between the two angels, the woman thinking that her former feelings about them being in love were true, the doctor believing he hadn't seen a more beautiful couple in years.

Judith cleared her throat even if she hated to interrupted them. "Andrew, would you stay then?"

"Sure! My pleasure!"

Judith smiled at his enthusiasm. "Ok! thank you! No problem then, doctor?"

"If he wants to stay, it's ok!" the doctor said also smiling.

"Hello, Judith!" a woman at the newspaper office greeted her when she walked into the place. "How was your staying in Chicago?"

"Hello, Ann," Judith replied with no special enthusiasm. "It was ok."

"How are your friends?"

"Much better, thanks. Hum... any news about my ad?"

"I'm afraid no..." Ann told her. "It's been a month and none has asked for further information."

"We haven't had any call at the agency either..." Judith sighed. "This is so weird... None seems to know them! It's like they had been out of anywhere!"

"And you say not even the employment office has more info..." Ann commented.

"No..."

"Shall we keep on printing the ad? Maybe it's just a matter of time..."

"More than one month? What kind of people could remain calm if their relatives had been missing for more then one month! If they had someone, they should have appeared by now..." Judith told her old friend.

"So?"

Judith sighed. "Take it out, Ann. Andrew and Monica are coming to live with me. They are my family now!"

"Don't leave me, Andrew!" Monica begged.

"I'm here! Come on, just try! I'm not gonna let you fall!" the blond angel replied. He was standing in front of his dearest friend, barely ten inches away, but she was trying to walk by herself for the first time in months. "You can do it, baby!"

Gathering all her courage and strength, Monica stood up and kept her balance without the cane she had been using. A minute later, she moved one foot ahead and then the other, always under the attentive look of Andrew. She gave three steps before she lifted her face to meet the little angel's bright eyes.

"Well done, Monica! You're walking!" he exclaimed looking at her with eyes full of love.

She laughed nervously and opened her arms for him to hold her. He obliged immediately kissing her cheeks and her forehead repeatedly. "I did it..." she said timidly.

"Yes, you did, sweetie, you did!" he said. Then for a second he just stayed there, lost in her loving eyes, stroking her cheek. Monica also felt like in a trance, unable to take her eyes away from his lips...

"Oh, my! Monica you're walking!" Judith's voice broke the magic of the moment, and the angels pulled apart a little embarrassed.

"Isn't it great?" Andrew said. "She did it!"

"It sure is! It's the best news I could get!" Judith replied.

Sensing there was something more behind her words, the blond angel asked, "No good news?"

Judith met his gaze. "No. None has replied to the ad in the newspaper. It's been a month... I asked them to remove it."

Andrew said nothing but tightened his hold on Monica a little bit. "We don't have any relatives?" the little angel asked with aching pain in her voice.

"It looks like..." Judith said feeling kind of guilty.

"We're alone..." Monica murmured, her eyes full with tears.

"We are not alone, Monica!" Andrew said emphatically, cupping her face to make her see him. "We have each other! You have me! You will always have me! I won't leave you alone, not now not ever!"

Two big tears rolled down the Irish angel's cheeks. "Don't leave me, Andrew," she murmured and then buried her face on his chest.

"Never, baby, never," he assured her stroking her hair and kissing the top of her head. "I couldn't bare it, Monica."

Judith felt a knot forming in her throat at the image of the angels. She felt so sad for them... but at the same time, seeing them holding each other, Andrew always taking care of Monica, she knew a good part of their former relationship, the most important part of it, had remained intact.

Back to New Orleans, Tess walked along the old street with a pensive, rather sad look in her eyes, staring at every passer by in a desperate attempt to find Monica and Andrew. She eventually stopped in front of a newsstand, where a local paper hanging on its outside called her attention – the same newspaper in which Judith had published the advertisement, and an idea crossed her mind. The supervisor bought the newspaper and lifted her eyes to the sky, "Oh Father... I need to find Monica and Andrew... Please, make it possible!"

She sat down on a nearby bench and spent the last hour anxiously flipping through the pages and looking for anything that would help her to find her dearest friends. She paid special attention to the classified adds and to the announcements reporting missing people in town. But, once again, frustration and deception appeared on her face after she had finished her search: there was no sign of the missing angels; nothing that could lead her to Monica and Andrew.

"Father... let them be alright... that's all I ask..."

A few days later, Monica had just finished to get ready to leave the room she had been sharing with Andrew for the last months when she heard a light knock on the door. "Come in!" she said, with a content smile upon her face.

Andrew opened the door and he and Judith came in, equally pleased to see that the Irish angel was so radiant and, most importantly, fully recovered.

"Well... seems that our stay here is finally finished!" he said, winking at her.

"I agree!" Judith added, "Is everything ready, Monica? Can we go?"

Monica nodded her head enthusiastically, "Yes! I can hardly believe we're leaving... Let's go!" she exclaimed, taking Andrew's proffered hand.

They left the hospital and took a taxi to the hotel they were staying at until the following day. While they were on their way to the hotel, they passed by a beautiful chapel.

"Judith... Could we stop here for a moment?" she asked.

"You mean at the chapel?"

"Yes... There's something I've been longing to do since I woke up in that hospital, you know..."

Incapable of denying that request, Judith ordered the driver to stop the car.

"Don't you want to come with me? I won't take too long." The Irish angel invited, before leaving the vehicle.

The look on Judith's eyes was one of indecision, "Well... I'll wait here this time, ok?"

"I'll go with you, Monica." Andrew spoke, and both left to the chapel.

When they entered the building, the mass had already finished and the place was now empty. Monica and Andrew walked along the aisle and, quietly, they sat side by side on the front pew.

Only after some long minutes did the blond angel break the silence, "I felt that too..." he said, staring at the altar, "I've been feeling the need of praying since I found out about the accident. I've even done it at the hospital, but, here, it seems that we're..."

"Closer to God?"

"Yes..." he looked at her and only then he realized the great sorrow that filled his heart whenever he saw her sad. But Andrew was decided to make her smile again, he had promised himself that he would do anything to erase any sad memory from her mind. "And do you know what I'll pray for right now?"

"I guess I have a wee bit of an idea..." she said, eyes focused on her hands, which rested upon her lap.

"I'll thank God."

"Thank?" the Irish angel spoke, somewhat surprised.

"Yes. For surviving a terrible accident, for our full recovery, for meeting people who took care of us and who helped us through this difficult moment..."

His words had an immediate effect on her: Monica raised her head and stared at him, "You're so right... there's so much hope in your words..."

Pleased to see such reaction, he gave a slight smile, "... and I'll say a special prayer thanking God for keeping us together all the time!" He was twice happier to see a slight smile forming on her face.

"I'm so glad you're here with me. Your reassurance brings so much comfort to my heart, to my soul."

"Well, I'm glad I can be of some help!"

"You surely are. And I'll thank God for that."

"Mind if I join you?"

"It would be a pleasure!"

They remained in the chapel for some more minutes and when they finally finished their prayers, both Andrew and Monica felt their hearts lighter than before.

"It's amazing how comforting prayers can be, you know."

"Yes, I agree with you, Monica."

"Of course having such a wonderful friend beside you also helps..." she spoke, and the smile on her meek face caused him a sensation of peace and joy he couldn't explain, but which he was quickly getting used to.

"I couldn't agree more!" and, also smiling, Andrew held her hand, "Now let's go? Judith is waiting for us."

With their hands intertwined, and their hearts sudden filled with happiness, they left the chapel in silence. Suddenly, before they reached the taxi, Monica released his hand and hugged him tightly, "Thanks..." was the only word she could utter.

Quite surprised with that unexpected attitude, but at the same time pleased with it, Andrew returned her warm embrace, also holding her tightly in his arms and gently stroking her hair.

They remained like this for a long minute when, still holding her, Andrew pulled away a few inches and brushed a long loving kiss on her forehead and a tiny little one on her cheek. And they held each other once again.


	10. Chapter 9

CHAPTER 9

A taxi was parked in front of a big two-floor house, in New Orleans, residence of Judith Harris, and she got out of the car with a content smile upon her face. Andrew and Monica were sitting in the back seat and, from the airport until that peaceful neighbourhood, the blond angel had his arm permanently wrapped around her small shoulders. Grateful for his reassurance, either with encouraging words or gentle gestures, the little Irish angel had rested her head on his shoulder in this meantime and when they arrived at the house, Andrew gave her a gentle squeeze. "Let's go?"

"Yes..."

He got out first and offered his hand to help her out of the vehicle. "Monica, Andrew, from now on this is your new house!" Judith said, after the taxi was gone. Monica continued to hold Andrew's hand and looked at the yellow building, happy to see some lilacs planted in the front yard. "It's lovely, Judith!" she said, with a beautiful smile upon her meek face.

"I'm glad you like it! Come on in, we have a lot to do today!" They crossed the yard and climbed the porch steps. Then, she opened the front door and they crossed a small hall, which led to the living room. Next to it, there was the dining room and, after, the kitchen.

"I'm under the impression that I've been here before..." Monica spoke, studying carefully the wooden furniture and the rooms.

"Yes! I invited you both to have dinner as soon as you started to work with me!" the woman explained, she and Andrew secretly happy to see that a small piece of memory had come back to her mind.

"Come, I'll show you to your rooms!"

They climbed the wooden stairs on the corner of the dining room up to the second pavement. There was a long corridor in it and 4 other doors: one at the end of the corridor, 2 on the right and one on the left.

"There's a bathroom at the end of the corridor and I have another one in my bedroom, so you can fight for it... Although I think you two would never fight with each other for anything in this entire world!" she joked, causing them to exchange an amused glance. "These are the bedrooms. The first one on the right is mine. The other one used to be my daughter's..." a little hint of sadness appeared in her eyes as she mentioned that, but it quickly vanished when she opened the door: the room had light yellow walls, white wooden furniture and there was a flowered blanket covering the bed, matching the flowered curtains in the window. Some delicate flowers in a small vase, on the bedside table, filled the room with a sweet perfume.

With a surprised smile, Monica stepped inside and looked around her with enchanted eyes, "Oh... Judith..."

"I hope you like it, dear. I prepared it the same way I used to do for my daughter... everything here is pretty much the same..."

The little angel held her hands in both of hers and squeezed them, "It's beautiful, Judith, thank you so much!"

"Yes... I guess Judith got it right; it reflects who you are, angel girl." Andrew added, gently stroking her hair.

"Come with me, I'll show you your room, Andrew."

They moved to the other bedroom, on the left side of the corridor, and she opened the door: now the walls were light blue and the furniture was similar to the one in Monica's bedroom. On the floor, a beige rug, matching the beige curtains, completed the decoration. "I hope you like it too, Andrew. This used to be our guest room but I haven't had guests since... well, since you two arrived!" Judith spoke.

"It's very beautiful too, Andrew!" Monica said, moved with the woman's generosity. The blond angel smiled and placed his hand over Judith's shoulder. "It's perfect, Judith! Thank you; for everything!"

She took the angels' hands, "You don't have to thank me... In fact, I guess having you two here was exactly what I needed... And now let's go! As I said, there's a lot to do!"

"Where are we going?" Monica wanted to know, as they headed to the stairs.

"Shopping!"

"Oh, but, Judith... You gave us clothes already..."

"Yes, and we don't want you to spend more money with us..." Monica and Andrew respectively spoke, but Judith interrupted them. "Oh, don't argue with me! We'll spend the afternoon at the mall!"

Monica was the most excited of the trio on that afternoon, enchanted with all those many coloured displays, which showed all sorts of products and were beautifully decorated. Chuckling at her childlike manners, Andrew and Judith exchanged amused glances while the little Irish angel seemed to have a comment for each and every tiny little thing that appeared on their way. Judith bought them clothes and other personal objects and after walking around so much, Monica started to feel tired.

"Oh dear, I'm sorry, I made you walk so much, you're still recovering from the accident..."

"Oh no, Judith, I'm having such a great time! Really! I just need to sit for a while, you know." The Irish angel was quick to say, shooting a reassuring look at her two dearest friends.

"Ok, then. Let's stop to eat or drink something!"

"Yes, Judith is right, we just have to choose a pl..."

"A coffee shop!" seeing Monica's brown eyes focused on the coffee parlour not far from them and shining enthusiastically, Andrew and Judith looked at each other with amusement.

Ten minutes later...

"... don't you feel something special when you taste coffee mixed with milk? I mean, the combination of the flavour and the smell do make you feel something different... as if it filled your soul..."

Monica spoke, holding a large cup of mocha. Andrew raised his eyebrows and looked at his cup, which was considerably smaller than hers. "Hum... not really..." the Irish angel stared at him in shock, "Honestly I prefer tea or chocolate... Hot chocolate, I guess." He watched with amusement as she shook her head in disbelief.

"Well, I agree that coffee tastes good and I actually like it but I guess you absolutely love it, dear..." Judith said; she and Andrew looking at Monica's cup, which was practically empty.

The little angel stared at the cup too and sighed with some frustration to see it was almost over. And also noticing the look of amazement in her friend's eyes, she blushed a little embarrassed. "Well... Yes... I think I kind of... love it..."

"Would you like another cup?" Judith offered.

Monica's eyes became brighter and she nodded enthusiastically, "Another cup would be lovely!"

Another 10 minutes later, Andrew and Judith watched in disbelief as the Irish angel finished to drink the second large cup of coffee and seemed eager for a third one.

"Look at this, Judith: it seems our angel girl is addicted to coffee!" the blond angel spoke, teasingly, and laughed even more when Monica glared at him with an adorable mix of annoyance and amusement, as she herself was having fun with the whole situation.

Tess crossed the gates of the Baltimore hospital and headed to the counter. In her eyes, it was possible to see all the sadness and worry caused by her two month search for her beloved friends, and in her heart, echoed a constant prayer to see them again.

"Excuse me, baby. I need some information about two patients..." she said.

"Ok, what are their names?" the attendant was quick to ask.

"Monica and Andrew. I was told they were transferred to this hospital after they suffered a bus accident near New Orleans..."

"Oh, yes, Monica and Andrew no last names! Yes, we have some information about them..."

The angel's eyes grew wide hearing that piece of news, "You do? Where are they? Can I speak to them? What's their bedroom number?"

"I'm sorry, ma'am, but Monica and Andrew aren't here. I have all registered in our files: we were waiting for them but, in the last minute, they were transferred to Houston..."

"Oh no! Don't tell me that!"

"Yes... I'm sorry, but you'll have to go to the Methodist Hospital and look for them there, I'm sure they'll be able to help you to find them."

Later, at night, after an exciting afternoon at the shopping mall, Judith and the angels came back home starving and Monica had offered to make dinner, saying that she would prepare them meatloaf. Fortunately, Andrew had an unexplainable feeling that he should go to the kitchen to check on his dearest friend's job and found Monica cooking (or at least trying to cook) the meat loaves, which were all irregularly cut and with a visible excess of pepper and other condiments in them. The blond angel frowned with concern when he saw that dinner was about to be ruined and knew that he had to do something quickly.

"Monica... Would you like me to help you out here? I mean... I know you can handle that yourself but I think that... if... if we work together, dinner will be ready faster, you know... and... I guess Judith is hungry..." he spoke, trying his best not to show his great concern. And now it was Monica who frowned with worry. "Oh my! Did she say something?"

"No! No, she's watching TV in the living room but... well, we had such a busy day that I thought you'd be a bit tired to do everything all by yourself and needed some help..."

"Well... in fact, I guess I'm having a wee bit of trouble here, you know..." she confessed, a bit embarrassed.

"I know... I mean, I can help you, angel girl..." he replied, immediately taking care of the food and decided to do everything he could to fix the damage she had done.

While he worked, Andrew had wisely given Monica some small tasks, so that she wouldn't feel useless and, some time later, with great effort, he managed to save the meatloaves.

"... hum... it tastes good! You two did a very good job!" Judith spoke; she and the two angels were now sitting at the table, in the dining room.

"Really?" the Irish angel's eyes grew wide and she was so pleased to hear that compliment that Andrew felt twice happier to have saved the meal.

"Yes! You and Andrew did great! But I'm not surprised, though; at least not about Andrew's abilities!"

"What do you mean, Judith?"

"When you came here for the first time you gave me some help with dinner too, Andrew! And I was actually surprised to see that you cooked better than me!"

Watching amused as the blond angel blushed a little, Monica nodded her head, "Well, I don't remember that but I do agree that Andrew cooks very well. And I'm eager to find out about the surprise he's preparing for desert!"

"I'm curious too; you even shoved Monica from the kitchen and forbid us to go in there!"

"Yeah, but you two will have to wait until it's ready; I'm not gonna tell you what it is!" he said, enjoying their curiosity.

Dinner time was a pleasant one and they spent such a good time chatting that soon Andrew had to excuse himself saying that he would check on the "secret desert". And, 10 minutes later, he came back to the dining room carrying a tray with a beautiful cake.

"It's a coffee cake," he explained, pleased to see his dearest friend's excitement when he announced that.

"Andrew!" Monica exclaimed, surprised and with her eyes shining eagerly at the delicious desert right in front of her.

Watching the two angels with a mischievous smile, Judith surveyed the cake and nodded her head, "Well, a coffee cake, huh?"

"Well, actually I kind of invented it for Monica... Just to remember the day we found out about our angel girl's... 'special feelings' concerning coffee!" he joked.

"Yes... 'special feelings' should always be remembered..." the woman said, much more to herself than to her dear friends, who didn't pay much attention to that comment, once Monica handed Andrew a knife, "C'mon, Andrew, cut it!" she pleaded, with childlike excitement.

But he shook his head, "Oh no, you do the honors, angel!"

Monica looked at him with gratitude and affection: of course a cake wasn't such a big deal, but his kind gesture was just one more little evidence of how much the blond angel cared about her. "Ok, then..."

With a beautiful smile upon her face, she took the knife and stared at the round shaped cake, as if studying the best way to cut it. Andrew and Judith couldn't help chuckling and, after some moments of indecision, the little Irish angel finally cut a big piece.

"... Judith I guess I'll have to make another one for the two of us, you know..." Andrew joked, teasingly looking at Monica, who was quick to interrupt him, "That piece is not for me!"

Her two friends watched as she carefully cut that same piece in two other pieces, and placed each half in a desert dish, giving one dish to Andrew and another one to Judith. "I wanted you two to have the first slice..."

The woman and the blond angel were lost for words with that loving little gesture, "... I don't have much to give and I don't think I'd ever be able to repay all the wonderful things you two have been doing for me, but I do want you to know how much I love you..."

Moved with Monica's words, Judith placed the dish on the table and held her hand, "Oh Monica... Dear, you're possibly the sweetest creature on Earth! Sometimes I think Andrew is completely right when he calls you 'angel'!" she said, holding the little Irish angel afterwards.

"I couldn't agree more!" Andrew spoke, and when Monica and Judith pulled away, he was the one to hold the Irish angel tightly in his arms. Happily, she returned the warm embrace, resting her head against his chest. "In fact, with a reward like this, I guess I'll make a coffee cake everyday, you know!" he gently ran his fingers through her hair and kissed the top of her head repeatedly.

Giggling, the Irish angel looked at him, "That would be lovely!" she said, and he didn't miss the opportunity to place a tiny kiss on the tip of her nose.

A couple of days after her visit to Baltimore's hospital, Tess headed to the front desk of the Intensive Care Unit in the Methodist Hospital in Houston. Never had she prayed so hard about something than this time to find her beloved angel babies, so before she reached the desk, she still lifted her eyes to the sky and murmured a prayer. "Father, please, help me."

"E-excuse me," the dark skinned angel asked to a nurse with a friendly smile. "I was wondering if you could give me some information about a couple of patients that arrived here two months ago more or less. In the Emergency ward they told me they were transferred here..."

"May I have their names? I can check on the files..." the nurse said.

"They were registered as Monica and Andrew Doe... They didn't have a last name..."

"Oh, yes! Andrew and Monica!" the nurse replied, the memory of the two angels coming to her mind immediately. "Andrew is a blond handsome guy with green eyes, and Monica is Irish, reddish hair and brown eyes..."

"YES! Those are my babies!" Tess exclaimed feeling that finally she was in the right way to find them.

"They were here, yes. Andrew had a bad concussion and a broken arm..."

"Oh, Father, my angel boy!" the dark skinned angel muttered. "A-and Monica?"

"Monica was in a more critical condition. She had a broken leg and lost a lot of blood. She had to go to surgery and one night she got worse, but both recovered just fine... She's walking as if nothing had happened..." the nurse said.

"Are they still here then!" the angel asked praying with all her heart for she to finally see them.

The nurse could easily see the apprehension in her brown eyes and felt really sorry for that woman who seemed to care so much about the two people everybody in the hospital had come to like. "I'm sorry, ma'am..."

"Oh, no, please..."

"They were released three days ago... and they didn't leave an address of reference..."

Tess lost the track of time walking around the city of Houston, her mind focused on nothing but the last memory she had of the two angels she loved like a real mother. They had been about to climb to the bus that would take them to Baton Rouge as part of their assignment. They had agreed to have dinner with her. They had hugged her telling her not to worry about them. She had seen them taking a seat together, waving good bye and then smiling and chatting as they always did.

How far were those days when they hardly got along! Now, Monica and Andrew were like one together, she could no more imagine them going in separate ways. She liked to see them that way, Andrew always keeping an eye on the little angel, and Monica always finding her way directly to his heart. They were now more than her family. She loved them more than anything or anyone other than God himself.

Being away from them had never been so hard, especially because she didn't know where to find them. At least, she was thinking, they were ok. They had suffered an accident but they had survived, even with serious injuries. She would have wanted to be there for them, taking care of them, and praying for them to recover just like a mother would have done. She couldn't help but feel a little jealous and a little guilty for not have done what a "mother" would have to do and yet allowed someone else to take her place.

Somehow she ended up passing by a beautiful church and she felt like going inside. The mass had just finished and she then walked along the aisle to take a seat on the front pew. After some seconds, she lifted her face to the altar and a calm feeling washed over her. In a way, she felt closer to God, almost as when she was in Heaven...

"Father," she began clearing her throat to talk, "I know You always have a plan that is always perfect and wise, and that sometimes it is not ours to know about it, but this time I'm asking You to show me what Your plan is. You do know how I love those angels, how Andrew has been my friend for centuries and how proud I am of what Monica has become through the years. That's why I'm finding so hard to be away from them, and even if it seems like Your will for me not finding them, I can't make myself accept it! Please, Father, let them be close together and let them remember who they are. Let them be ok at least... even if they are away from me..."

Tess couldn't say more as she lowered her head and let her tears ran unashamedly along her cheeks.

"Andrew, Monica! Please come down!" Judith shouted the following morning from the bottom of the stairs. She was in her way to work but she had something for the angels.

"What's happening, Judith?" Monica was the first to meet her in the dinning room.

""I almost forgot to give you something!"

"What?" Andrew asked coming down too.

"These! How did you expect to come back to the house without your keys, huh?" Judith then handled them a couple of key rings. Monica took hers and a sudden chill ran all along her body.

It had a small pendant with the shape of an angel and something felt strangely familiar about it. She remembered a store and she picking a similar key ring. Andrew had been there! "It looks just like you, angel". She could almost hear his words, the tender tone in his voice, she looking into his green loving eyes... Why had she bought it? For whom? She kept on looking at the little angel as if asking it to give her the answers she was looking for. Then another flash came to her mind... a little present box... she handling it to someone...

"I hope you like that key ring, Monica!" Judith's voice took her out of her reverie. "I like the way Andrew is always calling you 'angel' so I thought an angel was kind of suitable for you! It sort of looks like you!"

"That's what Andrew said..." Monica murmured in a very low voice.

"What?"

"What did I say, Monica?" Andrew asked coming closer and placing a hand on her shoulder.

The Irish angel turned to see him and his smile warmed her heart in a rather strange but very pleasant way. She knew well that not knowing anything about their past tortured him as much as it tortured her, but most of the times he tried not to upset her with his doubts. His concern about her well being always marveled her as she knew it went beyond doubts. Little by little she smiled back at him just as he reached a hand to stroke her cheek tenderly. "Nothing," she replied and wrapped an arm around his waist resting her head on his chest. "You said nothing." She decided to let the past take care of itself and not let the worries dark their present time. It was nice now to be able to walk without pain, they had a new "family" and, most importantly, they had each other. The present was definitely good.


	11. Chapter 10

CHAPTER 10

Some days after they had returned to New Orleans and settled at Judith's house, Monica and Andrew went back to work at the travel agency, and their lives fell into the pleasant routine of, always together, taking many tourists to beautiful and historical places, providing all sort of help that any of the visitors could need. And both angels felt it was the easiest part of the job.

Along with the adaptation, the friendship the angels shared since from the day they woke up in hospital grew stronger each and every single day. All the support and reassurance Andrew and Monica found in each other and in their faith in God had helped them to overcome the pain brought by the accident and the anguish and sadness for not knowing who they were; little by little, happiness was coming back to their hearts.

Monica had finished to give some information about the huge cathedral they were now visiting and she and Andrew watched as the group walked along the interior of the ancient construction. It was then that a middle aged woman approached the Irish angel. "Excuse me, young lady..."

"Yes, madam? Is there anything you need?" she asked politely.

"N-no... not exactly... it's just that... I believe you've met my daughter some months ago."

At the mention of a past that neither she nor Andrew knew, the expression on her face turned into a serious one, and she looked at Andrew, who was equally concerned. "R-really?" Monica said, visibly nervous.

"Yes. Susan made this same trip about 7 months ago and she told me about an Irish young guide from this agency that helped her when she was diagnosed with liver cancer. She told me that they entered this same cathedral and, while she was sitting there, staring at the altar, this young guide suddenly appeared by her side and started talking to her... Susan said they prayed together and at first I even thought she had spoken to an angel..."

Noticing Monica's anguish for not remembering that, Andrew took her hand and squeezed it, as the woman kept on talking. "...But now I see it can only have been you, Monica. All the reassuring words you told Susan brought her so much hope and peace... I guess it brought peace for us all..." some tears appeared in the corner of her eyes, "I just wanted to thank you, my dear."

"Well... I... I'm not really sure if I can remember that..."

"Oh it's ok, I imagine how many people you meet every day. But after watching you with the group here and how kind you are, I'm definitely sure that it was you my dear Susan met..."

"Where... where is she? I mean, your daughter, Susan?" Andrew asked, feeling a desperate need to protect Monica from the sadness he could feel flowing from her heart for not remembering that.

"My Susan passed away two months after that trip..."

"I'm... I'm so sorry..."

"Yes, I'm terribly sorry, madam..." both angels replied.

"Thank you. But my husband and I are taking this loss calmly, and we know that she is with God now... Thanks to the reassuring words you once told our Susan, she died with the certainty that she'll meet us again and my husband and I do share the same feeling. We know there's a loving Father taking care of us all and that's been the most important thing for us to survive. For months I thought that she had been talking to an angel... and..." She smiled, trying to send away the sad memories that that visit had brought, "And looking at you, meeting you in person, I guess I wasn't totally wrong about the angel thing!"

When the woman walked away from them, Monica looked at Andrew and he could see the tears forming in the corner of her brown eyes. "Don't cry angel, please." He gently lay both hands on each side of her head and searched for her eyes.

"I can't help it... I wish I could remember this..." the Irish angel replied, covering his hands with hers.

"I also wish you could... I'd do anything to see your memory coming back, but that's not how it works. It'll come back with time and we have to be patient." He leaned over and tenderly kissed her forehead, "Besides.. didn't you hear what that woman said? 'There's a loving Father taking care of us all.' You said that yourself, angel, and I truly believe that."

A tearful smile appeared on her face and she nodded her head, looking at him with her heart filled with tenderness and a sensation of joy that had become quite usual lately. "I believe that too, ya know... After all, He gave me you..."

Saying no more, he held her tightly in his arms, feeling fiercely protective of that kind and warm hearted creature who he too considered a gift from Heaven. And once again, Monica rested her head on his chest, finding there all the comfort and reassurance she needed when sadness invaded her heart.

He recognised the dark skinned angel the moment she crossed the street right in front of the café where he had stopped to buy an orange juice. "TEEEESSSSSSS!" Adam shouted despite the curious looks of all people around him. Running to cross the street too, balancing a dropping glass of juice, the angel of death reached the supervisor and smiled at her, yet not missing the slight hint of sadness in her dark eyes.

"Well, well, that really is a sight from Heaven, Adam!" the old angel said when they were together. "Where have you been, baby?"

Adam reached to hug Tess with his free arm. "Here and there, you know. Pretty busy! It looks like the Father keeps on wanting me to do my job as well as Andrew's!" he tried to joke but he regretted it immediately when he saw the supervisor looking away at the mention of her missing "Angel boy". "I'm sorry..."

"It's ok, baby," Tess replied with a sad voice. "I guess I have to get used to this. I mean... We're not forgetting them, are we?"

Adam felt a knot forming on his throat at the clear breaking on her voice. "I take it as you haven't found them."

"No, Adam, I haven't."

The angel of death finished his juice in one gulp and put the glass in a nearby trashcan, before he wrapped an arm around the older angel's shoulders and start walking with her. "I really can't understand this, Tess. We have looked for them all around the places where they had to be! We even found them at the hospitals, but... It's just as if we are meant not to find them... yet," he added at the sudden hurting look Tess gave him with his last words.

They walked in silence for a couple of streets more until the dark skinned angel spoke again. "You're right, Adam, you know? I too think we are not meant to find my angel babies yet... not even after seven months..."

"Tess, I..." Adam interrupted her stopping their walk.

"No, baby, it is true. How many times we were so close to find them? At the last hospital I went to, they had been released just a day before! But they didn't leave an address, nor a personal information that I can track! And they haven't tried to contact me either! I have asked the Father more times than I can count already about all this, and the answer I have gotten once and again is that I'll understand the reasons when the time is correct!" Big tears had formed in her dark eyes and were now running freely down her cheeks. It hurt Adam to see the always so strong Tess in such a state. "I trust Him to keep them safe, that's all I want to! I miss my babies, you know? We were always together, they were the closest thing I guess I can have to a son or a daughter, and it hurts me not to know where they are. But I am an angel," she said standing still and looking more like the imposing heavenly being she normally was, "I know there is a God that is always keeping an eye on all His children, angel or humans. So I have handled Him all my concerns. All I ask Him is to let me see them again one day, whenever He wants it to be..."

The deep trusting Tess was showing in her words also had Adam in the brink of tears. Yes, Andrew and Monica were his friends too and he missed them. He missed the childlike joy of Monica and the long chats with Andrew when they both had a rare free moment between their assignments. But as much as he loved his friends, he knew it was nothing compared to what they shared with Tess.

He had been the angel of death assigned to assist Monica in the first years of her as a caseworker, already under Tess' guidance, but after the very first time Andrew had joined them, it was out of discussion who had to be there. It seemed a natural trio, both the two older angels willing to protect the younger one and guide her through her tough labour. In the times he had joined them, he had marvelled at the way the friendship between Monica and Andrew had grown, taking them to a level of deep understanding of the other, where one could easily know what the other needed, felt or had to do. He had seen the pure feeling the two angels felt for each other and it warmed his heart as if he was contemplating face to face a piece of the Father's greater love. And he knew Tess had to feel the same and more, as she got to see that every single day. Not looking at the divine miracle of Andrew and Monica together had to be really hard for the old supervisor.

"I'm sure we will see them again, Tess," Adam said placing one of his hands on her shoulder and squeezing it reassuringly. "One day, any time soon, we'll find them and we'll understand all this..."

"We have to, Adam..." Tess murmured, the tears still shining on her eyes.

"And we will, you'll see! The Father may allow us..." He then hugged the older angel the way Andrew always used to, and let her cry her deep pain out.

"Andrew, can you and Monica wait here for the group and then walk them to the diner? I have to go to the agency immediately. Mabel called and it seems she needs some documents she can't find in my desk..." Judith told the blond angel one day while they were working. After months now of being together, the woman trusted them as she hadn't trusted anyone in years. That morning they had taken their usual route around New Orleans and were now in the French Quarter, visiting the old fashioned houses around before they went to take lunch. Usually, Judith was in front of the group, Monica somewhere around the middle and Andrew at the end, always keeping an eye on the Irish angel, and now was not the exception: he could see her two or three houses ahead, taking a picture for a couple as a souvenir of their trip.

"Will you join us there, Judith?" Andrew asked.

"I hope... but if I don't, please continue the trip as always and I'll see you either at the agency or at home, ok?"

"Ok, then. Take care."

The blond angel saw his boss taking a cab and going away before he turned to see Monica coming to him. A wide smile automatically reached his face, something he had discovered was usual now, just as the bursting joy he felt whenever he had her near.

"Where's Judith?" Monica asked softly, a beautiful smile on her face too.

"Mabel called her and she has to go to the agency. We'll take the group to the diner. Is it ok with you?" There was a note of concern in his voice that immediately made Monica's heart swell with thankfulness for having him near.

"Of course, Andrew! Why do you ask?"

"It's a long walk, it's too hot today, and you leg..."

"My leg is perfectly fine! It hasn't hurt me in weeks!" she replied looking directly into his green eyes. After the accident, she had made everything to put those bad memories behind her, yet the physical part wasn't easy as sometimes the leg she had almost lost ached badly. She usually made everything to hide that from Andrew and Judith, but he had a way to read the smallest expression on her face and she could never deceive him. In the days when she was in pain, he would even carry her to her bed, arrange a pillow under her leg and make her rest until the following day.

"If it starts hurting, I want you to take a taxi too..." he warned her.

"I will!" she said wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him on the cheek. That gesture took Andrew slightly by surprise, but having Monica on his arms felt so well that he would gladly hold her for the rest of the day. "Now, let's go, I'm starting to be a little hungry!"

They walked hand in hand for another good hour until they reached Bourbon street. All of a sudden, the clear blue sky went dark and big clouds covered the sun. "Uh huh..." Andrew murmured and turned to see Monica, both knowing what was to come: they knew weather there could change in a matter of seconds and a sunny day turn into a rainy one.

"Did you tell all the group where the diner was?" Monica asked.

"Three blocks ahead by Canal street. It's on the guide too," he replied. At that very moment, big rain drops started to fall surprising everybody on the street.

"The diner is three blocks ahead!" Andrew and Monica started to shout to the group that fortunately was not very dispersed. "It's called Bourbon's portal! We'll meet you there!"

The group heard them and started to run towards the restaurant, their shopping now forgotten. Andrew took Monica's hand and pulled her too, making her run as fast as she could. When they were almost near the diner, he released her to arrive to the door of the place and indicate the tourists to go inside. When the last one got in, he turned to look for her and couldn't help but chuckle at what he saw.

She was now walking slowly towards him, her cheeks still red for the effort of running even when her clothes were all soaked and her T-shirt clung to her small body, revealing her slim form, marking her tiny waist and her small chest. Andrew's heart started to beat faster: she looked absolutely beautiful; her body seemed so relaxed under the rain that he found himself longing to touch her, to hold her and caress her through her wet clothes. He had long time ago realised he felt attracted to her in a different way, not only as friends. So far he had wanted to think it was only because she was pretty, but the way his body was reacting to her vision told him something different. The need to feel her was nearly becoming a physical pain.

He met his eyes with hers and smiled broadly. She returned his smile noticing a change in the way he was looking at her, but it didn't make her feel uncomfortable. Much on the contrary, it was a pleasant sensation that made her feel important, different to any other woman in the world. He was standing under the awning of the diner but she stopped before she was under it too and reached a hand to him. The heavy rain became nothing but a soft breeze for them as Andrew reached to take her hand, the simple gesture of touching her skin sending a bolt of electricity through their bodies. "You're crazy, Monica, you know that?" he asked blinking when the rain started to drip from his forehead.

She laughed with a clear, happy laugh. "But you love me the same!" she exclaimed throwing her arms around his neck, her brown eyes never breaking contact with his.

How beautiful she looked to him now, and how tempting her rosy lips. He circled her waist, his lips barely a few inches away from hers. "Oh, yes, baby! I love you... so much you cannot even imagine..." he said in a low voice. Then surprising her, he lifted her from the ground and made her turn, her joyful squealing filling his ears with its sound and his heart with her love.

On a beautiful Sunday morning, barely a couple of weeks after the raining day, Judith decided to go home after the mass and prepare lunch and she had insisted that Monica and Andrew should enjoy the sunny day. They decided to take a walk in the park and the blond angel ended up having to stop at a coffee house and buy something to drink. "Did you bring my mocha?"

"Monica, I wouldn't dream of entering a cafeteria and not buying you a cup of mocha!" Andrew joked, giving her a large cup of her favourite drink, and keeping the one containing chocolate.

"You should try it too, Andrew, it tastes wonderful!" she suggested.

"I don't think so… I'm fine with my chocolate!" he said, with a mock serious tone in his voice. But Monica insisted. "Maybe you like coffee but you don't remember!"

"I'm sure I prefer chocolate!" he retorted, secretly finding her annoyance adorable.

Finally defeated, she shrugged her shoulders and they started a pleasant walk along the park after having their drinks. Monica's chatty mood was another thing that had remained intact. She had a comment for every single flower, animal and everything else that surrounded them and Andrew loved listening to whatever she had to say, as well as talking to her for hours and hours. All the joy both felt when they were together was evident in the brightness of their eyes and in the way they looked at each other, and that was one of the things they never wanted to change.

After a half hour walk, both sat on a bench under the shadow of a huge green tree and a soft breeze blew on their faces, slightly disarraying some strands of Monica's hair.

"It's such a beautiful day!" she stated, looking all around her and resting her head on his shoulder.

"Yes, it really is. You know... sometimes I just feel that being right here is exactly where I was supposed to be..." after a long pause, he kept on speaking, "God was good to me... I'm so grateful for all that I have at the moment…" he replied, equally admiring the park. Then, he turned to her and saw the most beautiful face he had ever seen on Earth, feeling a flood of contentment invading his heart "… I'm so grateful that you're here, Monica."

Deeply touched by his words, and also feeling a sudden sensation of happiness inside her heart, she stared back at him. "Sometimes I'm under the impression that I've known you for such a long time…"

"I feel exactly the same…" Andrew took her small hand into both of his, "In fact, despite of all we've been through recently, I think I've never felt so happy… I spent some time trying to find out where all this happiness was coming from and I think I've already got an answer for that…"

He gently placed a strand of her hair behind her ear; their stomachs felt like full with butterflies and their eyes locked up with each other. "… It's coming from you, Monica. When I wake up knowing that I'll see you again all the sorrow I feel about everything that's happened seems to fade away."

A kind and warm smile appeared on her face, together with some tears. "Andrew... Other than my faith in God, your presence gave my heart the hope and courage to go on and I'm sure He sent you to stand by me when I most needed it. It's a present I'll be forever grateful and that I don't ever want to lose…"

"Be sure you won't. Because staying away from you, Monica, is… unthinkable."

Andrew bent his head and, slowly, their faces inched closer; their eyes closed almost unconsciously and finally their lips met in the loving kiss they had so long been waiting for.


	12. Chapter 11

CHAPTER 11

That gentle kiss in the park only came to seal Monica and Andrew's love for each other, which had been evident in their eyes and in their hearts for some time. A few moments later, they pulled away just enough to look at each other's faces. "I love you, Monica," Andrew said, his green eyes shining with all the affection he felt for her.

Smiling with contentment, she was going to say something, but, suddenly, her smile disappeared and she stood up with a worried expression on her face.

"What is it?" he asked, also standing up and following her with worry.

"Andrew… I just thought about something…" she looked back at him, "What if we already have someone? I mean, what if I have a boyfriend and you have a girlfriend waiting for you somewhere?"

Andrew heaved a sigh of relief and smiled again. "Oh, that's it…"

"Don't you think it's serious?"

"Well, it is, and, yes, I've already thought about it," he stroked her cheek with infinite tenderness, "Monica, if we had someone, this person would have looked for us when we were in hospital the same way our relatives would, if we had any. It would've been impossible not knowing what happened; the accident appeared on TV and on the newspaper and Judith put advertisements looking for our relatives or friends for many days."

Monica considered those arguments for some moments and ended up agreeing with him. "Yes… I guess you're right…"

"So, if that's what you're worried about, please don't be," then, his face turned serious, "But… if you don't feel the same about me… well, I…"

Monica didn't even let him finish: smiling broadly, she held him tightly.

"Oh Andrew... I love you so much! With all my heart!" she exclaimed, resting her head on his shoulder. Somewhat surprised with that spontaneous reaction, he held her back, "Oh angel... You're so precious to me... so precious... And you made today the best day of my life!" he said, kissing the top of her head repeatedly, both with their hearts filled with joy and much love.

Hand in hand the couple of angels returned home, where Judith had been waiting for them.

"Hey, finally!" she said, crossing her arms in front of her chest and eyeing them with an inquisitive but rather amused look on her face, "I was wondering if you'd got lost somewhere between the park and our house!"

For an instant, the two felt quite embarrassed and looked at each other trying to find the best words to explain their delay.

"Oh... Monica and I... we... we were at the park..."

"Yes... Andrew bought me a cup of coffee and... and we started talking... and... well..."

"We... we lost track of time..."

Judith looked at them with her eyebrows raised and slightly confused, "I guess you two have been under the sun too long today!" and before they could say something else, she added, in a totally bossy way, "Now, c'mon, lunch is getting cold!"

Finding that tone of voice rather funny, and for a split second under the impression it was somewhat familiar to them, they smiled and quickly obeyed her orders.

"I'll help ya to set the table, Judith!" Monica spoke, she and Andrew following the woman.

"And I'll help to bring the food!" the blond angel added and didn't resist kissing Monica's cheek and causing her to giggle and Judith to turn around and face them, with the most confused face in the world.

"The food is delicious, Judith..." Monica spoke, she and her dearest friends sitting at the table.

"Well, thank you, dear. I know that Andrew here surely can do better but I guess I've been improving my abilities since you both arrived!" she said, causing Andrew to smile. "It could've been better if he were here to give me some help, but I know, I was the one to insist to make it and, besides this, you two 'got lost' in the park so I can't complain!"

She was joking, of course, and as soon as the woman had said that, Andrew looked at Monica and secretly winked at the little Irish angel, who smiled shyly and lowered her head. Judith stopped chewing and looked at them, realising that now Andrew was unsuccessfully trying to hide his smile.

"What!" she asked, more and more confused and more and more suspicious.

"Er... Nothing... Monica is right, Judith, the food is delicious! My help wasn't really necessary, you did great!" Andrew spoke, in an attempt to sound more natural.

When they finished, he offered to remove the dishes and stood up to pick their plates. And as he came closer to Monica, their eyes met again, in a tender gaze, and it was impossible, even if for a few seconds, not to notice the spark of love in their eyes. Once again, Judith stared at the two of them, aware that something was different, although she couldn't tell exactly what.

"I'll help you..." the Irish angel offered, but Andrew quickly covered her hand with his, "No, angel, I'll do it. You stay here and take a rest, ok?" he gently rubbed his finger against the back of her hand and stroked her cheek with the other. Her reply was a loving smile back at him, "You'll end up spoiling me, ya know?"

"I'll do my best!" he said, kissing her temple.

Some time later, while Andrew finished to do the dishes, Monica sat at the porch and watched as the afternoon sun shone across the blue sky and as the lilacs in the small garden seemed to be more vibrant. She sighed deeply, as if the entire nature was celebrating all the wonderful things that had been happening to her since the day she woke up at that hospital, some months before. And, among all these things, the most important one was definitely Andrew's love.

"... what are you thinking, huh?" his kind voice took her out of her reverie and she turned her head to face him, "About how God has been good to me all this time..." she replied, her soft brown eyes shining with love for him.

"Well, He sure has... So good, that now you'll get another cup of mocha!"

Grinning, she took the large mug he handed her and, as he sat down, Monica stroked his handsome face and inched her face closer, brushing her lips against his in a tender kiss. "Thank you."

"If you're gonna thank me like this I'll bring you a cup of mocha each ten minutes!" he joked, causing her to giggle.

"You don't need to do that, you know. Even if you didn't give me any coffee at all, I'd still want to kiss you, mister!"

"Whoa! Even with no coffee? Really?"

"Yes... but you don't have to test it to see if this is true! Just take my word!" As he laughed, the little angel took a sip of her favourite drink and when she looked at him again, he laughed even louder, which called Judith's attention. Curious, the woman walked over to the window and pushed the curtains away just enough to look outside, unseen by the two angels.

"What?" Monica wanted to know, with an adorable mix of annoyance and confusion on her meek face.

"You look quite cute with this 'mocha moustache', angel girl!"

With infinite tenderness, the blond angel reached up and cleaned her face with gentle fingers, "There it is... my pretty angel girl back again!"

He cupped her chin and studied her meek face, his eyes travelling from her soft brown eyes to her lovely cheeks and finally her rosy lips. The loving way she was looking at him and the fact that they were both alone only encouraged Andrew to inch his face closer and press his lips firmly against hers, now in a long sweet kiss, full of the deepest love and devotion. And from the window, Judith covered her mouth with her hand and smiled, happy to see that so much waited scene between the two people who were practically her children now.

"Oh, my God! Finally!" she murmured, not even dreaming of interrupting the two sweethearts, "Oh, they make such a lovely couple... God, I'm so happy! So happy, as if they were my dear children... And they love each other so much, I could see it at the moment they came to me... Please, let this love grow in their hearts!"

Dinner that night was full with smiles and gazes not only between Monica and Andrew but also between Judith, who was infinitely happy to see them so in love. When the table was clean and empty, the three moved to the living room, Monica turned on the TV to find "Love story" was being aired.

"Oh, my, it's been years since the last time I watched that!" the woman exclaimed taking a seat on the couch while the two angels cuddled together on the love seat. "I'm sure you must've watched it sometime before, but if you don't remember it, you'll love it!"

Although she had assured the angels that she loved the movie, it wasn't long before Judith was already dozing on her seat, and finally she decided to go to bed. She went to the kitchen to get a glass of water and smiled in her way to the stairs as she saw Monica now laying on the love seat, her head on Andrew's lap, while he was combing her hair tenderly.

Actually, the blond angel watched almost nothing of the film as he spent the time just looking at his beloved girlfriend, drinking in the delicacy of her features, of her brown eyes shining with tears with the sad ending. When a tear escaped her eye, he dried it with his thumb. "I'm sorry," Monica chuckled and sit up, "I know it's silly, it's just a movie…"

"It's not silly," he said placing a finger over her lips and then moving it to caress her cheek. "What I see is just part of your heart, baby. That's who you are, kind, compassionate..." He then stopped talking, his heart pumping faster against his chest: he had said that about Monica before, he was sure! And it had been to Judith in fact! It had been in that restaurant where they used to take the tourists every week, the first day they had worked with Judith! Yes, he definitely could remember that! If he could only remember why they had started in the jobs, how they had arrived to new Orleans… All of a sudden he got what seemed to him like quick flashes: he and Monica dancing in an old tavern during a wedding, they looking at a magazine by the shore of a lake… with another woman by their side… an old woman with dark skin… Unconsciously he frowned trying to concentrate in that image that all of a sudden was very clear in his mind…

Feeling his tension and seeing how the expression in his face changed, Monica eyed Andrew carefully, a little feeling of worry growing inside her heart. "Andrew?" she called him softly, "are you alright?"

"Huh?" the blond angel turned to see her, and her worried expression made him smile but also lose the name he was about to remember. "Yes, baby… I was just remembering how wonderful the time we've been together has been…" It wasn't the whole truth but he felt bad of worrying her with his vain attempts to get his memory back. "God blessed me so much with you, sweetheart… I can hardly believe you're here, by my side, allowing me to show you how much I love you…"

"I love you too, Andrew," Monica murmured softly, leaning over his hand on her cheek, "so much that it seems I can't stop thanking God for sending you to my life…"

"Oh, Monica… my sweet Monica…" he murmured and then leaned down to kiss her. At the second their lips met, he put aside the worries that had been in his mind just seconds before, knowing that whatever they had to face in the future, they would be able to do it as long as he could have her in his arms like that every single day when the night had come.

Days passed quickly as Monica and Andrew started to date. Eventually Judith had caught them middle kiss and they had had to confess what was going on between them. Judith has teased them a little, pretending for a moment to be mad, but soon confessing she was happy and very pleased. From that day on, the angels used to go out in the afternoon after job to spend some time alone and normally they'd go back home to have dinner with Judith. Days turned into weeks and weeks into the firs month since they had started dating, and that day Monica reached Judith to have a word with her. "Are you ok, Monica?" the woman asked truly worried by the angel's face.

"Yes, Judith… I… I was wondering if you could give me the afternoon off? It's been a month since Andrew and I… well…" the little angel blushed.

"What are you planning?" Judith asked with a hint of mischief in her eyes.

"It's a surprise… but I need time without him at home…"

"All right!" Judith exclaimed excitedly. "You can go whenever you want…" seeing the Irish angel smile, she added, "and I'll make sure he's busy till tonight."

"Thank you!" Monica said hugging her friend and kissing her cheek before she all but ran to get her bag and leave the office.

Hours later, Judith's kitchen seemed to be a battle field. Dirty dishes were spread all around, cabinets were half empty as all its contents were over the table. And one little angel seemed in charge of all that mess… Monica had decided she could cook a great dinner for Andrew, so she had a fish baking in the oven, some vegetables already chopped and the ingredients of what seemed to be a cake waiting to be used.

She so lost track of time that she hadn't realized it was dark already until she heard the voice she less wanted to hear at that moment. "I really don't know why you asked me to go there, Judith," Andrew was saying, "the place is not worth a five minutes visit…"

"They had told me it was a nice place…" the woman argued and said nothing more as her eyes were wide open seeing the mess in the kitchen.

"What…?" Andrew started equally surprised.

"Oh, God! I thought I had more time and…" Monica tried to excuse herself with the tone of a little girl that has taken all the clothes out of her mom's closet.

"Baby, what were you…?" the blond angel stared to ask but a smell caught his attention first. "Monica, is there something in the oven?"

The Irish angel turned immediately to check on the fish, Judith and Andrew running to help her take it out. "Oh, no…" Monica exclaimed seeing the result of her master work: the fish was completely black, the onions and the carrots around it reduced to little pieces of charcoal… "It was supposed to be ready in 5 more minutes…"

"You used the oven in a very high temperature, Monica!" Judith couldn't help but scold her. "Thank God we're here, it could have exploded!"

To both angels this piece of news was all that they needed to feel one the release of having his beloved girlfriend safe in his arms, the other the guilt of not only making a big mess but also placing in danger the two people she loved the most. "I'm sorry…" she murmured before she started to whimper.

It pulled at both Judith's and Andrew's heart to see her disappointment after the big effort she had put in the dinner. The woman felt kind of guilty and the angel just pulled her into a tight hug. "Oh, sweetie… It's ok…"

"It's not ok," she sobbed against his chest. "I wanted to make a surprise for you… I wanted this day to be special…"

"It will be special, Monica", Judith interrupted them, and the little angel turned to see her through expectant brown eyes. "You both go get dressed. Elegant clothes, if you please… You have somewhere to be in one hour!"

"Judith, we…" Andrew tried to argue.

"Nothing! I have it all under control!" she announced. "After all… there are a couple of friends that have offered special dinners anytime I wanted for all the customers I have sent them through the years…" she said blinking an eye in complicity.

"I should have helped…" Monica said walking back to the kitchen half an hour later. Judith had now cleaned almost everything and the only traces of Monica's big mess were only some recipients out of their places.

"Bah… Everything's been taken care of…" she said examining the angel like a mother does with her daughter that goes to a formal party for the first time. "You look beautiful!"

She was wearing a tight deep green dress with spaghetti strips. The contrast of her white skin and the fabric of the dress only made her look prettier than usual. "Thank you…" Monica murmured and blushed.

"Well, I'm ready…" Andrew said coming to the kitchen while he adjusted the last button of his shirt, but when he saw Monica, his mouth dropped open. "Oh, Monica…" he said and looked at her from head to toe with such intensity the little angel blushed twice. "You're stunning…"

The sound of a scorn interrupted Andrew's silent contemplation as Judith went to check on something through the window. "Your cab's here… What are you waiting for?" she asked eagerly! "Go, enjoy the night!" and when she saw them leaving, she felt a joy as she hadn't felt in a long time.

"May I?" Andrew asked getting ahead to Monica to pull her chair for her before the waiter could do it. The smile he got from her was more that he could've asked for. He simply was hypnotized, he had never seen Monica looking more gorgeous, and the fact that she had dressed up like that for him, only made him feel more excited.

Monica noticed that he couldn't take his eyes off her when the waiter came to serve their drinking request. "Andrew…" she offered softly, right when the waiter had gone, "… why are you looking at me that way?"

The innocence of her question made him go back to reality. He reached for her hand and kissed it tenderly. "Because you're the most beautiful woman I could have ever met, Monica. Because God blessed me so much with a woman like you…"

"I am the one who is blessed, Andrew…" she said in a low voice, her eyes looking straight into his. "You are so important to me that I can't even begin to describe it…"

They shared their meal in between loving sights and words of love, and when they were waiting for their dessert to be served, the blond angel offered Monica a small golden box. "Andrew… what?" she replied clearly surprised.

"You wouldn't believe I have forgotten what day is today, would you?" he said amused by her face. "Open it…"

When Monica unwrapped the little package, she found a little golden heart with two simple words written on it: "My love". Tears threatened her eyes as she reached to cover her mouth to drown a sob. "It's so beautiful…"

"Not as much as you, but it will help you remember that you are my only true love, Monica…" he told her taking the box and untangling the delicate chain to place it on her neck. "I love you…"

"I love you too!" she said cupping his face and reaching to kiss him on the lips. They shared some more kisses until there was music in the room inviting the couples to dance.

_My love, there's only you in my life,  
The only thing that's right.   
My first love, you're every breath that I take,  
You're every step I make. _

"Shall we?" Andrew said offering his hand, that Monica took willingly.

_And I, I want to share, all my love with you,  
No one else will do.   
And your eyes, they tell me how much you care.  
Oh yes, you will always be, my endless love. _

Once they reached the dance floor, he made her turn. But that simple action made them both freeze in their places. "We… have…" Andrew started.

"Yes…" Monica said feeling the same: they had done that before, they had danced other times together. They remained there looking at each other's eyes, forcing their minds to bring back some memories they could hold on to. Monica was the first one to break the try. She lowered her head and sighed in defeat.

"It's ok…" Andrew told her and kissed her forehead. "They will come back when time is needed. Let's just enjoy we have each other now…" And so, pulling her closer to him, he got lost savoring in the moment of having the woman he loved so much right there in his arms.

_Two hearts, two hearts that beat as one.  
Our lives have just begun.   
Forever, I'll hold you close in my arms,  
I can't resist your charm.  
My love, I'll be a fool, for you I'm sure,  
You know I don't mind.  
Cause you, you mean the world to me.  
Oh, I know I've found in you, my endless love. _

_And love, I'll be that fool, for you, I'm sure.  
You know I don't mind.  
And yes, you'll be the only one.  
Cause no one can deny,   
This love I have its fine.  
I'll give it all to you,  
My love, my love, my endless love. _


	13. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Some months passed since Monica and Andrew had confessed their feelings and, as time went by, they found themselves more and more in love with each other. Even the tourists didn't miss some tender glances, secret loving words and discreet caresses, and could easily notice the loving way the Irish angel would look at her beloved friend, who always treated her with infinite care and gentleness and, most importantly, with much love.

Of course Judith was the happiest one watching how such a beautiful feeling could emerge from a terrible accident. And she was also grateful that God had chosen her to be next to them, taking care of the two as if she was their mother, which had become indeed a fact. Their memory would return with time, she was sure about it, but regardless of this fact, a deep friendship had already been set in her heart, something the woman hadn't felt for a long time and which had given her a new reason for living.

That week, the trio was making a 4-day-tour in a small city a few miles away from New Orleans, and after a quick stop at a local café, they were now coming back to the bus that would take them to the hotel.

Monica and Judith were talking near the exit of the café when Andrew tiptoed from behind his beloved friend holding a red rose and signalled Judith not to say anything. A second later, the Irish angel felt a "mysterious hand" covering her eyes.

Giggling, she covered his hand with hers "... I think it's someone I love very much..."

Pleased to hear it, he uncovered her eyes and placed a tiny kiss on her cheek, "Well, it's definitely someone who loves you very much, angel!" he said, giving her the rose.

"It's so beautiful..." moved with every kind gesture from him, she took the flower in her hands, "Thank you!"

As she turned around and they shared a tiny kiss on the lips, Judith smiled and rolled her eyes playfully, "Well, I guess this is a very good way to finish one more day! It's time to go back to the hotel."

"Well, the tourists are all in the bus, we are ready to go now!" Andrew announced. And at that moment, a worried look appeared on Monica's eyes. "Oh... I... I was wondering if you could wait for me just a minute more..."

"Of course, Monica, but... why?" Judith wanted to know.

"Well, because the mocha latte here is wonderful and I wanted to buy one more cup before we went back..."

Her face was blushing when she said that, as she knew they were now chuckling at her "admiration" for coffee.

"It's okay, dear, we'll be waiting for you."

The Irish angel moved away from them and the old woman didn't miss how Andrew followed her with this green eyes, which were permanently shining with love for her. "Hum... is it my impression or 'someone' here is completely in love for that beautiful young lady over there?"

Smiling, he nodded his head and never took his eyes away from Monica, "You're right, Judith. I cannot imagine myself without her. She's... She's my world..."

"You have no idea how happy I am to hear this, Andrew! You're both like my children and seeing you together and so in love the way you are is... well, it's wonderful!"

"Yes, I love her... In fact, there's something I've been thinking about lately..."

"What is it?"

"I'm thinking about asking Monica to marry me..."

The woman couldn't feel happier hearing that piece of news, "Oh, my God, but that's wonderful news, Andrew!"

For the first time, he turned his eyes from Monica, who was waiting for her cup of mocha, and looked at Judith, "But this is meant to be a secret. When we get back home I'll invite her to have dinner and then propose her."

A broad, contented smile appeared on her face, "It's okay, I promise you that I won't say a word about it!"

They returned to New Orleans two days later and, even if she liked the idea, Monica was a little surprised with Andrew's sudden invitation to go out at night. It wasn't their anniversary or any other special day at all. Besides, she thought he would be tired from the trip and would prefer to stay home watching some TV.

By seven, Andrew was already dressed in an elegant tuxedo waiting for his beloved Monica in the living room, and one could see the nervousness in his eyes and in the way he paced from one side to the other. Judith watched as he glanced at his pocket watch for the 100th time, running his fingers through his blond hair. "Andrew, you have to calm down! Otherwise she'll notice it!"

He sighed deeply and looked at the top of the stairs, where there was still no sign of Monica, "I know but I can't help it, Judith! I guess I've never felt so nervous in my entire life!"

"Oh, Andrew... I understand that this is a very special occasion but you should try to stay calm. Things will go just fine! Everybody can see how much Monica loves you!"

A contented smile appeared on his handsome face, "Do you really think so?"

She rolled her eyes, "Oh Andrew, I don't 'think', I KNOW it!" Their conversation stopped when Monica appeared on the top of the stairs wearing a silk blue dress and pair of pearl earrings, which matched the pearl necklace she was wearing; both lent by Judith, who knew pretty well how important that occasion would be. And one more time Andrew felt his heart pounding loudly in his chest to see such a beautiful image coming towards him. She looked like a real angel, a wonderful dream coming true right before his eyes.

They were soon hypnotised by each other's gazes and the brightness in their eyes became a reflex of their immense love. Smiling, he kissed her hand and gave her another red rose.

"Thanks..." she replied, also smiling at him.

"You're so beautiful, angel..." Andrew said, placing her hand against his heart and lost in her brown depths.

But he was not the only one lost loving glances and words: Monica was marvelled at how elegant and good looking he was, "You're handsome too, Andrew..."

"And it's a shame that such a beautiful couple stays here inside this house! My car is waiting for you out there, ready to take you to that restaurant!" Judith suddenly interrupted them, eager to see things moving on a bit faster.

Those words brought the blond angel back to the real world and he nodded, "Yes, that's true. We should go now, angel."

"Andrew... Are we celebrating anything?" the young angel wanted to know, once they had left the house. He took her both hands and they stopped walking in front of Judith's car. "Yes..."

"And what is it? It's not our anniversary and... well, considering that we don't know when our birthdays are..."

Overwhelmed with tenderness, he placed his hands on her upper arms and softly caressed her white skin, "What if I tell you that we're celebrating our love?"

The Irish angel's meek smile caused his heart to skip a beat, "Well, then it's the best reason in the world to celebrate!"

The blond angel cupped her chin up and slowly bent his head: their lips met a second later. Feeling her heart beating faster, Monica closed her eyes and tilted her head, savouring that gentle and romantic kiss, softly taken and which caused her to feel butterflies in her stomach.

"... never forget how much I love you, angel..." Andrew spoke, when they finally parted. She touched his face and looked deeply into his green pools, "Never... I'd never forget what I see every time I look into your eyes or what I feel every time you kiss me... Not even in a million years, Andrew... My love for you is too big to let that happen."

"Be sure that the same goes to you, angel. Always." Smiling, he bent his head and kissed her lips softly one more time.

Their dinner was a romantic one; Andrew had made a reservation for the best table in the restaurant, which was beautifully decorated with candles and had a beautiful view. When they had finished desert, he reached out to caress Monica's face. "So... was everything alright?"

"That was a wonderful night, Andrew. Everything was just... perfect." She said, eyeing him with tenderness. Andrew stared at her for some instants, as if trying to gather all his courage to say something really important. Taking a deep breath, he took her both hands and kissed each of them.

"Monica..."

"Yes?"

"There's something I need to talk to you..."

Seeing the serious expression on his face, she frowned with concern the smile on her face faded away. "What is it, Andrew? Did something happen? Did... Did you remember who you are?" she asked, nervously.

"Oh, no! No, angel... It's... It's nothing to do with the past. To be honest, it has to do with our future..."

"Our future? What is it?"

Seeing all the worry in her eyes, the blond angel nearly scolded himself for scaring her like that. "Monica... I've been thinking and... well... It's been some time I realised that I don't really care how long it'll take before my memory comes back. And you know why, angel? Because all the moments I've spent with you, since the day you woke up at the hospital, worth a life time..."

Hearing that, Monica smiled again and placed her hand on his face, "I think that even if I spent years praying for someone special to be at my side, I wouldn't have been able to ask for someone as precious as you, Andrew..."

He took her hand again and kissed her palm, "I'm glad you think this way because I don't have any intention of leaving your side anytime soon... in fact, I brought you here because I need to ask you something..." He made a short pause and reached for something inside his pocket. A second later, the blond angel placed a small velvet box in Monica's hand.

"A present for me?"

"Open it, angel..."

She opened the box and found a beautiful gold ring, with a diamond on the top of it. Speechless, the young angel stared back at Andrew, who stood up and knelt right beside her. Taking another deep breath, he took her hand and finally spoke the words that were in his mind since they had got there, "Monica... will you marry me?"

Taken aback by his question and by the engagement ring he had just placed in her hands, Monica remained silent for a few seconds and her face turned into a serious and pale one.

"Monica? Angel?" he called her, a bit confused by her shocked reaction. But the Irish angel let him even more confused when she placed the box with the ring on the table and lowered her head. Then, she let him a stiffed sob and soon a tear ran down her cheek. "Monica? What... what is it?" he asked, now really worried.

"... I'm sorry..." she managed to say, almost in a whisper; more tears falling from her eyes.

"You're sorry? Why? What happened?"

"I can't, Andrew..." she finally faced him with a miserable, devastated look in her eyes, "I can't marry you..."

"You can't? What do you mean, Monica? I thought... I thought you loved me..." he replied, deeply shocked and not believing what he was hearing.

"And I do! I do love you!"

"I don't understand..."

In between sobs, she tried to explain herself, "It... it wouldn't be fair with you if... if we got married like this... I wouldn't forgive myself if..."

"Monica, what are you talking about?" he desperately wanted to know, searching for her eyes, cupping her chin up so that she could face him.

"I can't do that, you don't deserved it! I'm sorry, Andrew, I'm terribly sorry!" she suddenly stood up and ran away from the restaurant, leaving an astonished Andrew behind.

That night, Judith was so happy that she didn't manage to sleep and decided to wait for the young couple to return from the restaurant; eager to see Monica wearing the beautiful engagement ring she had secretly helped Andrew to buy. The woman was sitting on her bed when she heard the noise of a car in front of her house and immediately rushed to the window. But she frowned with concern to see Monica alone, getting off a taxi and running to inside the house. And a minute later, Judith heard the bedroom door slam.

Decided to know what in the world could have happened on that special night, she headed to the angel's room and softly knocked the door "... Monica? May I come in?" After a short pause, she insisted, "Monica? Dear, what happened? May I come in?"

A crying voice was finally the reply she had been waiting for. "Yes..."

The woman opened the door and found Monica lying in her bed, grabbing a pillow and crying miserably under the light of the nightstand. Judith rushed to the angel and quickly took her hands, "Monica? Dear, what's happened? Where is Andrew?"

"Oh Judith... hold me, please..." she sat up straight and sobbed violently in the old woman's arms for long, painful minutes. Sensing that something very serious had happened, Judith remained in silence for some time, rocking the young angel as if she was holding and comforting her own daughter.

Only ten minutes later Monica's tears and sobs started to subside and the woman finally spoke again, "Shh... Please, try to stay calm, Monica. I'm here with you, dear. You know you're like my daughter..."

"Thank you..." she whispered back; her face and eyes red for so much crying.

"Do you want to tell me what happened?"

"Andrew... He... He asked me to marry him..."

"Oh but that's... that's wonderful! That's something to celebrate, dear! Why are you crying like this?"

"Because I said no!" fresh tears rolled on her cheeks as she faced the woman and tried to explain the reason why she refused Andrew's proposal.

"You said no? But... don't you love him?" a perplexed Judith asked.

"Oh yes! How I love him... Andrew is my world, Judith. He's part of my soul... I don't even want to imagine how my life would be without him..."

"Then I don't understand..."

"The problem is that... I'm afraid, Judith!"

"Afraid? Afraid of what?"

"Afraid of not being what Andrew needs until I have my memory back! What if I'm not the right person for him? What... What if we get married and my memory comes back and then he realises that it was a mistake? What if he realises that I'm totally different from what he had expected?" sobbing, the Irish angel concluded, "I love him too much to let that happen, Judith! He deserves a better person! He deserves someone complete; and I'm not that person!"

The Irish angel started to sob again and, one more time, Judith gave her a motherlish hug, "Oh child... Please, don't cry..."

"I saw the look in his eyes when I said that I couldn't marry him, Judith... I hurt his feelings so deeply..." Judith felt her trembling with fear and deep regret, "I don't know what to do... Please, help me..."

Gently, the woman pulled away and removed a few strands of hair from Monica's crying face, "I want you to answer to only one question, Monica. Regardless the fact that you and Andrew have lost your memory, regardless the fact that you both temporarily forgot about your past... Do you love him enough to marry him? To share the rest of your life by his side?"

The Irish angel looked at the woman with her eyes filled with emotion, "I don't even have to think about it, Judith... the answer to your question will always be yes... Yes, I love him deeply, with all my heart, with all my soul... And there's nothing I want more than spending my life by his side..."

The woman finally smiled, pleased to hear that, and gently placed her hand against Monica's face, "Then, child, you have the most precious gift you could offer Andrew: your love. And if this feeling is pure and sincere, Monica, it will never vanish when your memory returns." She took the angel's hands, "You once told me that God has a greater purpose in His mind, a greater plan, and that although we can't see it at first, later, even the most terrible things can turn into something good. Well, the accident that you both suffered some months ago was terrible. But the feelings that came from it are the most beautiful ones two living creatures can share! I can say that better than anyone because I witnessed everything! If this love you and Andrew are feeling inside your hearts is true, and I know it is, then it can only come from God. And if it's a present from God, it can never be a mistake, Monica, because He never makes mistakes. You just have to trust Him."

Things the following day were as odd as could've been expected. His feelings hurt as he had never known before, Andrew refused breakfast and excused himself of being at the agency almost all day long. To Monica nothing could be more painful. After a night without closing her eyes, she had realized what a big mistake she had made by rejecting Andrew's proposal. The worst part was that now she didn't know how to fix that mistake.

Every time she tried at least to meet his eyes, he wouldn't allow it. He was so distant to her it was almost physically painful, even if he was only a feet away.


	14. Chapter 13

CHAPTER 13 

"... please, child, don't cry... it's terrible to see you both apart but it's even more terrible to see you crying so desperately like you are now..." Judith spoke, caressing Monica's hair. All day long, the little angel couldn't manage to concentrate on her daily tasks and nothing she tried to do seemed to work on that day. A week had passed since she had turned down Andrew's proposal and living under the same roof as him and working at the same place only made things worse. He was cold, distant, merely spoke to her and even spent more time at the agency just to avoid her presence.

That afternoon wasn't different. While he remained at work, Monica decided to leave and rush back home, feeling tears of sadness pricking her eyes. Feeling like a mother who was always ready to help her children, Judith arrived home some time later and it took Monica only a minute to burst into tears.

And now, lying on the sofa and resting her head on the old woman's lap, she listened to her advice sobbing quietly, feeling as lost as when she woke up at the hospital, with no memory, a few months earlier. Then she spoke, a trembling voice that showed how much she feared to lose Andrew's love forever, "... I don't know what to do, Judith... Imagining Andrew away from me hurts so much... so incredibly much... It's worse than when I realised I had lost my memory..."

Moved to see her suffering, Judith sighed deeply, also fighting the tears in her own eyes, "Monica... my dear Monica... you're like a daughter to me, you know. And all I want in this life is your happiness, dear."

"... Andrew is my happiness... I know that now... Why is it that only when it's too late we realise what really matters in life?"

The old woman shook her head, "No, dear. It's not too late for you two."

"He doesn't want to see me, Judith! He barely speaks to me here or at work, and when he does it's about work... I don't even know if he still loves me..."

"Oh, my goodness! Of course he loves you!" she replied, as if hearing the most absurd thing. Then, a slight smile appeared on her face, "And I know a way to fix things between you both!"

Still sniffling, Monica sat up straight and looked at the woman with sceptical eyes, "You do?"

"Yes!"

"But... what if Andrew tells me that he... he doesn't want us to be together anymore?"

"Trust me, Monica. He won't do that because I love him the same way I love you: like my child, and as a mother I know what's in his heart. It's exactly what's in your little heart, dear. It's pure love!"

"... it's okay Judith, I'll be there by 7 p.m. Is Mr Williams a new client or do you know him?" Andrew wanted to know, on the following day, when Judith told him he should go on a business dinner that evening. They were at the travel agency and Monica was away with a group of tourists and wouldn't be back anytime soon.

"Oh... well... I... in fact, I know him quite well, he's... a very good friend of mine... a very nice person... But we've been having problems to communicate lately and need to talk to him urgently."

"Are you sure I should be the one to go? I mean, if you know him..."

"Oh, I'm sure you'll two get along just fine and arrange everything, Andrew! Besides, I'm feeling a bit tired, you know. I'm not at your age anymore!" she joked, finally seeing a slight smile appear on his handsome face.

"Don't worry, then. I'll take care of it for you," he spoke, placing his hand over her shoulder.

"Thank you, Andrew. How... how are things with Monica?" she dared to ask, knowing it was a delicate issue.

The way his expression changed told her everything, "I guess you can have an idea, as you've been the closest person to us all this time..."

"It's all so sad..."

"I didn't cause it, Judith; she was the one to refuse my proposal and didn't even tell me why... although I can imagine the reason..."

"If you're both not talking to each other how come you know all the reasons?"

The blond angel sighed deeply and lowered his head, "It's... still too painful to talk about it..."

"... because you love her very much, right?"

"Yes..." he spoke, turning his eyes to the old woman again, "... unfortunately she doesn't feel the same about me..."

What he didn't notice when he left the room was the mischievous smile on the woman's face.

Andrew didn't see Monica for the rest of the day, and at night, when he left for the business meeting, he assumed that she was locked inside her bedroom, avoiding to see him again.

And that simple thought alone was incredibly painful.

When he arrived at the restaurant, however, the receptionist showed him to his table and, instead of an old business man with grey hair and full of wrinkles on his face, he realised that the person sitting across the table waiting for him was Monica.

"M-Monica?" he spoke, with a confused expression on his face. His first reaction had been an intense feeling of anger, but it didn't last more than a second: he loved her so much to be mad. With tears threatening to fall from her dark pools, the little angel took a deep breath, decided to go on with the plan but clearly fearing its consequences, "Andrew..."

"I... I don't understand... Judith said that the dinner would be with Mr Williams..."

"There's... there's no Mr Williams, Andrew..."

"No?" Andrew frowned, not understanding her words and the reason for her presence. He sat down in front of her and only then did he notice her trembling hands, showing that she was afraid of something. "Then... why did she lie? What's happening?"

"She told you to come here because... because I need to talk to you..."

He was surprised, that was evident in the way his expression changed, but he wasn't less hurt, "I see... I thought that you had said everything already..." the tone of his voice was cold but when a tear rolled down her cheek, his first impulse was to hold her tightly and tell her how much he loved her.

"I'm sorry..." she spoke, biting her lower lip and struggling not to break into tears, "... I... I came here to say I'm sorry about the way I treated you the other night... it was wrong of me. Please forgive me."

"Why did you do that?"

"I... I was afraid..."

"Afraid?" confusion still clouded his face but deep in his heart he could feel the pain and sorrow coming from her own heart, and it made all his irritation disappear little by little.

"Afraid of not being what you really need... Afraid that one day you could wake up with your memory back and realise you had made a mistake by marrying me... afraid that you'd then realise I'm not the person you've always wanted by your side... Because I'm not an entire person until I remember my past, until I remember who I am..."

Astonished, he listened to those words and a terrible, devastating sensation of guilt washed his soul. He could have never imagined that was the reason why she refused his proposal! Lots of other things, a lot more terrible, had crossed his mind – all of them having to do with the fact that Monica didn't love him anymore. But he didn't even bother insisting for an explanation. No. At the moment she left the restaurant the only thing he did was making sure that she had returned home safely, but he never tried to give her another chance to explain herself.

Andrew felt terrible.

"Monica... I..."

"Please, let me finish Andrew..." she pleaded, and he watched as she searched for something inside her purse. How she trembled! She was so nervous that he feared for her condition.

And even more surprised, he saw that she was holding the same velvet box he'd given her a week before. Monica stood up from her chair and knelt right next to his own chair, opening the small box containing the beautiful engagement ring he'd bought her. Then she took his hand and finally spoke again, a choked, trembling voice, "Andrew... Please, forgive me for doubting about us, about our love... The truth is that I love you so much that... that I'd rather spend the rest of my life without knowing about my past than not having you in my future..." after one more silent tear had fallen from her eyes, she kept on speaking, "Will you marry me? Will you give me this honour and let me stay by your side for the rest of your life?"

Now tears also filled the corner of his green pools and he felt like bursting into happiness at those words. She loved him. The disastrous night on the previous week had been a misunderstanding, a terrible mistake, and now the woman he loved was there, asking for his forgiveness and to marry him.

A moved, tender smile appeared on his handsome face and he reached out to caress her cheek, wiping the tears that never ceased from falling from her doe like eyes. How he loved her! He loved her so much that he felt like marrying her at that very moment. "Monica... angel... my angel... You can be sure that there's only one answer for this question... I love you... I guess I've always have... and yes, I so want to marry you..." he knelt right in front of her and took her hand to his lips before placing it right against his heart, "You're my everything... my heaven, my safe harbor... And I'm the one who is honored by that proposal... I'm the one who should be asking for your forgiveness, as I was so stubborn to see the truth that was right in front of me..."

With one of his hands wrapped around hers, he took the ring; then tenderly slipped it into her right ring finger and raised it to his lips. "I love you, Monica…" Crying with happiness, the young couple held each other tightly, with Andrew entangling his fingers through her soft auburn hair, under the enthusiastic applause of the clients that were at the restaurant, all of them happy to watch such a romantic scene, typical of a marriage proposal.

"I love you forever, angel!" Andrew pulled away and lay both hands on each side of her face and pressed his lips against hers in a tender, loving kiss.

"... I bet Judith remained awake until the moment she saw us getting out of the car, hidden in between the curtains in her bedroom..." Andrew whispered, lazily running his fingers through Monica's hair. Both angels had returned home a couple of hours later and now they were sitting together on the sofa, snuggling against each other in the shadowy living room.

She let out a small giggle, resting her head against his chest, listening to his steady heartbeats, "She has the right to see if the plan worked, ya know... After all, it was her plan..."

He kissed the top of her head repeatedly and held her a bit tighter, feeling grateful that everything had turned out just fine. "I'm so sorry, angel. I'm so terribly sorry... I should've known there was an explanation for the way you acted last week... I should've talked to you on the following day instead of staying attached to my own stubbornness."

"You couldn't have guessed... I shouldn't have run away that day... it was wrong of me..." she replied, her eyes shining with fresh tears.

"No... That doesn't justify the way I acted with you on the following days!"

A minute later, Andrew felt her tears moistening the fabric of his shirt and gently pulled away, stroking her cheek with tenderness, "Angel? What is it?"

"When... when I saw you entering through the door back at the restaurant I... I feared that you might not want to forgive me... I was... so nervous..."

His eyes widened, realising the fear he had inflicted in her little heart, "No, Monica... no, baby... It's been a while since I found out that... that this heart of mine will always beat for you... I will always love you, always."

Her dark eyes searched his, "I know that now but... but when you shut me out after that night... you wouldn't talk to me or even look at me... I felt so desperate..."

"Sweetheart, no..." he kissed her forehead, her eyelids, one hand wiping her tears away. Then, with his tears filled with sorrow and regret, he caught her up in his strong arms, holding onto her tightly once again. As she buried her face against his chest, he spoke again, his voice nearly trembling with emotion, "My sweet, precious angel... I'm so terribly sorry... So sorry, baby... I guess I was afraid to think that you refused my proposal because you didn't love me enough to marry me..." he continued speaking when she motioned to interrupt him, "I know, I know it was silly of me to think about it... But for a moment I was desperate too..."

Kissing the top of her head, he concluded, "I promise you I'll make you very happy, Monica. I promise you that with all my heart... with all my soul. I love you, angel."

"I love you too, Andrew..." she spoke, and both remained there until the moment she fell asleep against his chest. Then, he carefully raised her in his arms and took her to her bedroom, gently placing her on her bed and covering her small form with a blanket.

Andrew lay one more soft kiss on her cheek and quietly left the room, closing the door behind him.


	15. Chapter 14

CHAPTER 14

"So... it's all set! Monica, Andrew... you'll get married here in two weeks!" the priest said, writing down the important date on his book, inside the sacristy. Hand in hand, Andrew and Monica observed as he registered the time and the day their wedding would take place. "Thank you so much, Father O'Brien!" she exclaimed, happiness evident in the couple's eyes.

"I'm the one who is grateful celebrating this wedding, considering your story and how you've managed to overcome everything that's happened!"

"God knows exactly what He was doing, even though we doubted about His own plans sometimes..." Andrew replied, gently squeezing Monica's hand and shooting her a loving gaze.

"Oh, yes. There's always a greater purpose in everything that happens in our life. And only He has the power to make wonderful things come out of sadness and pain, such as he did with you both!"

They bid the religious man farewell and headed back to work, hand in hand along the street. They crossed the avenue just a minute before a red Cadillac stopped in front of the same church. A dark skinned angel got out of it and entered the chapel - the sadness for her dearest friends' absence was reflected on her face. Quietly, Tess walked up to the front pew and sat down facing the altar, "Dear Father, I know there's a reason why I haven't found them yet and I trust that You'll give me my babies back... But please don't let it be that long... I miss them so much... and I beg you let them be safe and alright, don't allow anything bad happen to them..." she prayed.

The following two weeks seemed to fly and finally the so much expected wedding day arrived. Judith closed the tourism agency and put a happy note and the door, announcing the ceremony. While Andrew went to a friend's house, to get ready there, Monica was getting ready at Judith's house, and the old woman had offered to help them not only with the ceremony but also gave them a two week trip on honeymoon as a present. "You two make a very beautiful couple, that's for sure!" she said, helping Monica to arrange her hair. "And when he sees you like this and wearing this gorgeous dress... Andrew will certainly fall in love all over again!"

A slight smile appeared on Monica's face as she imagined the look in Andrew's eyes once they were at the altar, "I love him so much, you know..."

"Oh, everyone who sees you two together knows that! And I'm sure you'll be very happy, dear!"

A sudden knock on the door interrupted their conversation and Judith and the young angel looked at each other with confused eyes, "But who can that be?" the old woman said, frowning with a mix of concern and impatience.

"Maybe it's someone from the agency..." she ventured, but with total uncertainty.

"Well, whatever this person is he or she will have to go away, I'm not finished yet and we have a wedding to celebrate! Everything else can wait!"

Judith climbed down the stairs to see who it was and when she opened the front door, the woman frowned with concern, "Andrew? What are you doing here?" she exclaimed, with a not very pleased face to see the blond angel standing at the doorway, fully dressed in an elegant tuxedo.

"Hi, Judith, I just came by to know how Monica is..."

"Well, she's getting ready for the ceremony!" she replied, matter-of-factly.

"I know... I mean... I was wondering if... May I talk to her..."

Her mouth dropped open as if she had heard the most absurd thing in the world. "No way you're gonna see her before the wedding!"

"But we..."

"No 'buts' mister! You and Monica will see each other at the church and period! And if I were you I'd start heading there right now!" she exclaimed, with a mock stern expression on her face and with an authoritarian tone in her voice. Realising he would never be able to enter that house and talk to his sweet angel, he had no other option but to give up.

"Alright then... I... I guess there isn't a single chance that I could at least say hi to her..."

"Yes, you're right, not a single chance!"

"I'll see you at the church then..." he said, trying not to chuckle at the woman's mock annoyance.

After making sure she'd locked the door, Judith climbed up the stairs and returned to Monica's bedroom. The Irish angel had listened to the entire conversation and was giggling at the way the old woman had spoken to Andrew.

"What's the problem with your fiancé? Can't he wait a few hours to see you?" she grumbled, taking a hair brush to continue to do her previous task.

Monica's giggles subsided and she suddenly stared at the woman's image, reflected in the mirror right before her eyes, and remained pensive for a few seconds.

"Monica? What is it?"

"I don't know... You remind me of someone..."

She raised her eyes in curiosity, "I do?"

"Yes... Someone I used to love very much..." her lips curved in a slight smile, "... like a mother..."

"Well, then I'm flattered!"

Monica kept on staring at the woman and trying to remember who had an attitude similar to Judith. But after a few instants, she let out a frustrated sight. "I can't... As much as I think I can't remember!"

"Well, here's my advice, honey: try to focus on the present for a while and let the past for later. Today is your wedding day and I don't want anything to interfere with it! and I'm sure your nervous future husband agrees with me!"

The guests were not only those who worked with Monica and Andrew but also many people who the couple had met while they were working and who they ended up helping with their comforting words and their messages of faith and love. And judging by how full the sacred building was, it was possible to realise the young couple had touched many people's lives and even unaware of their angelic status, they had accomplished many assignments.

When the doors of the old cathedral were open, everybody watched with fascinated eyes as a beautiful young lady walked down the aisle, wearing a lovely wedding dressMonica was wearing an elegant fully lined one piece strapless gown with medium length train. Beautifully made, beaded and embroided bodice, fully boned with lace-up back. There was a satin detail around the bottom of the skirt and it split a little at front. The soft matching veil was mid-calf length and had a single layer with ribbon-edge. Monica's hair was tied up in a bun, and that, along with some soft make up, accentuated the beauty of her meek Gaelic features. Holding a gorgeous flowered bouquet, and with her sweet doe like eyes staring steadily at the altar, the young bride let out a sigh of pure happiness and then pretty white high heel shoes trailed the red carpet towards the church navy, where Andrew was.

The blond angel watched fascinated as his beloved 'angel girl' came closer to him, his green pools sparkling with love at her image. But his were not the only ones – Monica's eyes were also reflecting her enchantment to see how dazzling he was in an elegant beige tuxedo. His strong masculine features combined with his kind and gentle nature had always moved her to tears and, in the last few months, were also responsible for the pleasant sensation of butterflies in the pitch of her stomach and the constant feeling of joy inside her heart.

Two bridesmaids and a flower girl were walking ahead of her, adding more gracefulness to the ceremony, and as she reached the altar and stared into the eyes of her soon-to-be husband, she saw the glowing love and pride in them. How they loved each other! There wasn't a time the couple had felt so happy other than when they'd found themselves completely in love with each other and for many times since they'd realised their hearts beat faster when they were together, Monica and Andrew lifted their prayers thanking God for that wonderful feeling that had grown in their hearts.

With contented sighs, the guests watched as the bride took the groom's proffered hand and their eyes met – sparkling with love and a multitude of other affectionate feelings.

"You're more beautiful than never..." she heard him whisper, once they were both standing next to each other.

The ceremony went by as expected, and when the father requested Judith to come closer and bring their rings, both Monica and Andrew had to bit the inside of their cheeks to stop their shouting of pure joy. Gulping hard, Andrew took Monica's ring and reached for her left hand, sliding the jewel while he said: "Monica, take this ring as a symbol of my love and my devotion. I promise to remain faithful to you in good and in hard times, in health and decease, till death do us part.." Then he lifted her small hand to his lips and kissed it lovingly.

"Andrew," the little angel started, "take this ring as a symbol of my love and my devotion to you. I promise to remain faithful to you in good and in hard times, in health and decease and till death do us part..." She then slid too the wedding band into his left finger and squeezed his hand lovingly. It was all she could do to stop the tears of joy falling from her eyes. With eyes bright wet too, the blond angel reached to wipe her tears with tender thumbs, a gesture that made more than one person in the audience to release a moved sigh.

At the end of the beautiful ceremony, Father O'Brien finally pronounced them husband and wife and when they looked at each other again, the couple of newly weds knew they had a connection stronger than ever for the rest of their life. "I love you, angel..."

"I love you, too... very much..." Monica replied, with her eyes full of emotion and fighting back the tears that would soon roll down her cheeks again.

He easily cupped her face in his hand and ran his thumb across his cheek, committing to memory her beautiful image. She smiled up at him and as their eyes met she slowly felt his hand pulling her face towards his. Monica closed her eyes as their lips met, in a gentle, delicate caress, sealing their union.

Among all the guests, Judith was the happiest one, that was for sure. The couple of angels were like her children and she had adopted them practically when they'd first met, all those months earlier. And now, watching at that beautiful wedding ceremony, she couldn't hide her emotion as her tears of joy never stopped from falling.

There was a reception after the wedding ceremony, with music, laugher and dance. And if there was something Monica and Andrew felt like they'd been doing forever was dancing together. For a few moments they had been apart, giving attention to their guests and thanking them for their presence. But then the soft melody of an Air Supply song started to fill the air, their gazes met once again and Andrew made his way up to her, speaking silent loving words through the sparkling of his sweet green eyes. Her sweet smile back at him and the way she returned his gaze caused his heart to skip a beat and, lifting her hand up to his lips, he whispered, "May I have this dance?"

"Yes... always..." she replied, with a smile that melted his heart for the thousandth time since they'd met. Both walked up to the dance floor and, never breaking the eye contact, stood face to face. The blond angel circled her waist and brought her closer to him while she placed one hand over his shoulder and the other held his hand.

"I picked this song just for you, angel! It says some of the things I wanted to say to you today..." he whispered into her ear, and brushed a tender kiss on her temple. Then they started to sway elegantly following the slow rhythm of the melody.

i_I was down, my dreams were wearing thin  
When your lost, where do you begin  
My heart always seemed to drift from day to day  
Looking for the love, that never came my way._

_  
Then you smiled and I reached out to you.  
I could tell you were lonely too.  
One look then it all began for you and me.  
The moment that we touched, I knew that there would be_

Two less lonely people in the world  
And it's gonna be fine.  
Out of all the people in the world  
I just can't believe your mine.  
In my life where everything was wrong  
Something finally went right.  
Now there's two less lonely people in the world tonight.

Just to think, what I might have missed  
Looking back, how did I exist?  
I've dreamed, still I never thought I'd come this far,  
But miracles come true, I know 'cause here we are.

Two less lonely people in the world  
And it's gonna be fine.  
Out of all the people in the world  
I just can't believe your mine.  
In my life where everything was wrong  
Something finally went right.  
Now there's two less lonely people in the world tonight.

Tonight I fell in love with you  
And all the things I never knew  
Seem to come to me somehow,  
Baby, love is here and now there's...

Two less lonely people in the world  
And it's gonna be fine.  
Out of all the people in the world  
I just can't believe your mine.  
In my life where everything was wrong  
Something finally went right.  
Now there's two less lonely people,  
Two less lonely people  
Two less lonely people in the world tonight

Two less lonely people in the world  
And it's gonna be fine  
Out of all the people in the world  
I just can't believe your mine  
In my life where everything was wrong  
Something finally went right  
Now there's two less lonely people in the world tonight/i

"...Andrew..." he heard her saying, in a low sweet voice. He pulled away just a few inches to look at her face, "Yes, angel?"

"Thank you..." her eyes were sparkling brightly with contentment.

"Thank you for what, sweetie?"

"For... for being you... for marrying me..." she finally answered, a bit shyly and blushing a little, as her rosy lips curved in a slight sweet smile.

And now he couldn't help but chuckling, "Angel, you don't have to thank me for that! I'm the one who is honoured for having you in my life, I'm the one who is always thanking God for having your love!"

All of her senses seemed to be heightened, the soft feel of his lips on hers, the musky aroma of his cologne and the easy way his arms wrapped around her waist. Her hands automatically went up his arms to his chest, then travelled to his neck and then back up to his face.

"I love you..." she said, as he planted tiny kisses on her forehead.

"I love you too, baby... Always... For the rest of eternity..."

After the party, the newly weds returned to Judith's house just to change their clothes and pick up their luggage. The old woman was with them and when the taxi stopped in front of the house, the couple held her tightly, a grateful, moving hug.

"We'll never forget everything you did for us, Judith... I... I don't even know if one day we'll be able to repay you..." Monica spoke, holding her tightly and with tears falling down from her eyes.

"What I did is nothing compared to the present you both have given me... When God sent you two to me, he was giving me two children, to compensate the one I lost so many years ago... You returned my will to live... And I love you both very, very much. All I ask of you is that you live a happy life."

"I promise we will, Judith," the Irish angel gave her one last hug and then it was Andrew who held the woman tightly, "And you take care of Monica, you hear me?"

Chuckling, he pulled away and held his wife's hand, kissing its palm tenderly, "Don't you worry, Judith. She's a precious treasure for both of us!"

They bid each other farewell one more time and entered the taxi, which would take them to the airport and set off to their honeymoon trip – one more of Judith's wedding present.

"... I confess I'm a wee bit tired..." the Irish angel said, snuggling against his chest on the back seat of the car.

"Yes, it was a busy day!" he was going to say something else but a quick look at her face and he couldn't help chuckling: she let out a yawn and her eyelids were growing heavy with sleep – how those sweet childlike manners had always enchanted him! Bending his head, he kissed the top of her head repeatedly, tightening his hold on her a bit more, affectionately and protectively at the same time. "Take some sleep, honey... I'll wake you up when we get at the airport, ok?"

His whispered voice made a sleepy smile appear on her face, "Okay... I love you again..."

"Love you too, baby..." he replied, also closing his eyes with contentment, enjoying the feeling of having his sweet angel girl in his arms. What they didn't see was the red Cadillac that had stopped right next to their taxi, nor Tess standing behind the wheel. But even before the oldest angel saw them, the traffic light turned green and their car went away.


	16. Chapter 15

CHAPTER 15

A car was parked in front of the beautiful and cosy yellow house that stood right in front of Judith's house. After two weeks away, Monica and Andrew were back from their honeymoon and would start a new and hopefully happy life close to the one who they considered a mother and somewhat an angel in their existence, the lady who stood by their side in the most difficult and also in the happiest moments of their life.

The blond angel got off the car and rushed up to the other side, to open the door for his beloved wife, who was giggling once she took his proffered hand and also left the vehicle, "Andrew, you don't have to do this all the time, you know?" she spoke, eyeing him with the natural tenderness of the ones who are deeply in love.

With a mischievous smile upon his face, Andrew pulled her closer to him, and then wrapped his other arm around her waist, "Well, sweetie, I want to inform you that I'll take each and every opportunity to hold you and to kiss you like... well, like now, _Mrs_!"

Their lips touched a second later in a soulful, loving kiss. Once they were parted, Monica held him tightly and rested her head upon his strong chest, admiring the house where they would now live. "I don't think I've ever felt so happy..." she sighed, enjoying the way he would always entangle his fingers through her auburn hair and his gentle caresses.

"The same goes to me, angel." He replied, kissing the top of her head repeatedly, "And I promise you I'll make you feel that happy every day of your life, sweetie. Everyday."

Smiling, she looked up at his handsome face and tilted her head in a way that made his heart melt for the hundredth time. "You don't have to promise me that, Andrew. I know you will! You make every minute of my life a happy one!"

The brushed a few more tiny loving kisses on her lips and then caressed her rosy cheek. "Don't you want to go inside your new house, Mrs?"

That tiny word at the end of the sentence always made her smile grow wider, and she nodded her head emphatically, "Yes! Let's go!"

But before she could move away from him, Andrew tightened the hold around her waist and suddenly, he lifted her into his arms. She started giggling as the blond angel carried her across the front garden, way up to the door, "Andrew! What are you doing?"

"Well, we got to keep the old tradition, sweetie!" he said, amused with her laughter, "I should carry you inside our new house!"

"You did the same at the hotel where we stood!" she was clearly enjoying being in his arms.

"Well, what did I tell you? I won't stop having you in my arms anytime soon for the next hundred years!" he replied, kissing her cheek. As they made it to the door, he carefully placed her on the ground just to take the keys in his pocket and open the door, holding his beloved wife in his arms once again; the sound of her giggles filling his ears with the sweetest melody he'd ever heard.

When Judith returned home at the end of that same afternoon and saw Andrew's car parked right in front of her house, her heart nearly burst with happiness at seeing her two dearest friends back. They were now a happy family that would stay together practically all day long, sharing a happiness that Judith herself had almost forgotten after she'd lost her husband and daughter many years before. God had given her two wonderful blessings and she would treasure them for the rest of her life.

Days became weeks and weeks quickly turned into three happy months for the three of them. Monica and Andrew were more and more in love with each other and anyone who saw the couple could tell the great bond that brought them together just by the look in each other's eyes.

But a paper on Judith's desk made her frown with concern when she saw that, on the following week, they would have to take a group of tourists back at Baton Rouge, where she, Andrew and Monica had had that terrible accident that almost killed them. Deeply worried and a bit reluctant to go back there, she had called them both and had a long talk with them. It was far too clear that subject brought awful memories back to the three of them, but it was Monica, with her infinite tenderness and calming voice the one to put Andrew's and Judith's hearts at ease.

"What happened in Baton Rouge was terrible, that's true. But... almost a year later, I guess we all learned that God has the power to make wonderful things come out from terrible ones..." Andrew was sitting right next to her and she reached out to take his hand, "... look at us now... Though I have no memory of my life before the accident, I'm almost sure that... that I was in love with you, Andrew, and I guess that what happened only made this love grow stronger..."

The blond angel felt the presence of tears at her words and at the sudden sadness that those painful memories brought to his heart – images of Monica fighting for her life and at how brave she was during a difficult recover caused a wave of emotion to flood his very soul. He squeezed her hand and took it to her lips. "I'm positively sure I've always loved you, angel... And yes, you're right about this love... it's always growing stronger."

She returned his loving gaze, speaking loving words through the brightness of her dark pools. Then, the Irish angel turned to Judith and kept on speaking, "And you, Judith, you found not only peace of heart but also two friends who love you as a mother... a loving mother who sheltered and helped us through the most difficult time of our life... And who we'll always carry in our hearts."

Monica's words touched the woman's heart deeply, and tears of emotion were finally making their way down her cheeks. "You're right, dear... cause there was no way I could've guessed God would make me smile again... And when I look at you two, when I realise how important you are in my life and how much you taught me... that's what I feel like doing: smiling and thanking Him for this blessing... for these two wonderful blessings."

Later at night...

"Angel? Sweetie?"

As they would travel early on the following morning, and Monica wasn't feeling very well during the day, she and Andrew had snuggled close together in the sofa to watch a romantic comedy on TV, but the little angel soon fell asleep against his shoulder half hour after the film started. Andrew's voice interrupted Monica's peaceful sleep and she stirred in his arms to look at him with a bit confused dark brown eyes, "Yes?"

"I think the film you wanted to see has just come to an end..." he replied, with a slight smile, tenderly brushing away a few strands of hair from her face.

Slightly blushed, she sighed a bit frustrated. "I wish I could've seen it..." but then a smile crossed her pretty face, "... but you're so nice and warm I cannot resist..."

Loving to hear his laughter, she felt him tightening the hold on her, "Then I guess it's high time a certain angel went to bed!" he said, and brushed a tender kiss on her forehead, "We'll have a busy day tomorrow, and you were not feeling well this afternoon."

She didn't miss the concern in his eyes as she spoke, "I'm fine now, Andrew. I had just a little indisposition during the day... It's been a wee bit hot lately, you know."

"Are you sure you're okay? We could talk to Judith and maybe you-."

"Andrew, I'm fine, I promise!" she had to stifle a yawn and that made him chuckle, "...Just a wee bit sleepy to be honest..."

"Well, then let's get going straight to bed, Mrs!" he said, kissing her cheek lovingly. The blond angel helped her to her feet and wrapped a protective arm around her small shoulders, and after turning the TV off, both headed upstairs. But that night, contrary to his sweet angel girl, who immediately fell asleep once she had settled in his strong arms, the blond angel didn't manage to sleep that fast. The accident in Baton Rouge was still in his mind, and he wondered if and when they would recover their memory back – and if that could happen on the following day. Sighing deeply, he decided not to think about it any more and looking at Monica's form, so gracefully asleep in his strong arms was a way to put his heart at ease.

"Sleep well, angel. I love you..." he whispered, kissing her forehead tenderly, and falling asleep some time later.

They left to Baton Rouge on the following day and, as Monica had already foreseen, they had a very pleasant and calm trip, with stops at the most important monuments and tourist points of the city and, even if the memory of the accident did come back once in a while, the Irish angel's joy and the visible love she and her beloved Andrew shared were so beautiful to watch that they managed to shatter any sad reminiscence that could spoil that perfect sunny day.

After lunch, the group of tourists took a break at the Old State Capitol Building, and Monica, Andrew and Judith took the chance to rest a little. Hand in hand, the angels strolled around the old monument, having the old lady standing by their side. She looked at their entwined hands and let out a small laughter, which Monica didn't miss.

"What is it, Judith?"

"Well... I was remembering something that happened the last time we visited this very place... something rather cute, I must say!"

The young couple looked at each other with some amusement and then back at the middle aged woman, "And what is it that you saw here?"

"You, mister, trying to kiss your 'angel girl'!" she finally spoke, hearing their laughter a second later, "You both insisted on telling me that you were only friends and that you were just talking but the truth was that I interrupted a kiss!"

Their content laughter at knowing that piece of information was something really pleasant to hear, "I was really embarrassed but you two kept on trying to convince me that you were erm... 'close friends', though anyone could notice you were in love by the way you looked at each other and the care and protection you always had with Monica!"

The couple exchanged another loving gaze and Andrew couldn't resist to cup her face with his hand and bend his head, laying a tiny but tender kiss on her lips. "Well, now you don't need to feel guilty anymore, Judith!"

"Oh, okay, I'm glad I mentioned the subject so that you could make it up with your 'angel'!" the woman replied, but right before they could say anything else, Monica stopped walking and her face went pale in a matter of seconds.

"Angel?" Andrew called her, but his heart started to pound loudly in his chest when she grabbed his hand and only managed a whisper in reply, "Andrew... I'm not feeling well..."

Were it not for his strong hold around her waist, the little angel would have hit the stone ground as she fainted.

"Monica? Monica? Angel, talk to me!"

"Monica? Dear, answer to us, please!"

Andrew and Judith were frantic with despair at the pale and lifeless image of their beloved Monica, now lying in her husband's arms.

"Monica? Angel, please, talk to us! God, please, bring her back!" the blond angel was nearly frantic as Judith took Monica's hand and rubbed it in her own hands, "Her blood pressure must've dropped..."

"She wasn't feeling alright yesterday... God, I shouldn't have let her come..." guilt tore his heart and he was caressing her cheeks when she stirred in his arms, slowly regaining consciousness.

"Angel? Baby, can you hear me?"

"Monica, dear, please, answer to us!"

"Andrew... Judith... what... what happened?" she asked, confusion written all over her face.

"You fainted, baby... You were not feeling well..." Andrew explained, helping her to her feet.

"I... I suddenly felt so bad... a bit dizzy, you know..."

"That's not good, I'm taking you to the nearest hospital right now!" the blond angel urged, extremely worried.

"No, Andrew, I'm fine, really, I-"

"I'm sorry, angel, but you're going with me right now; this sudden dismay is far more serious than a little indisposition!"

"Andrew is right, dear, maybe you should see what's causing you this. If I can recall it, you've been feeling way too tired during all the week." Judith added, and the little angel had no other choice but to agree with them.

Adam saw the dark skinned old angel sitting on a bench, in the local park. She was admiring her surroundings with the usual sadness that had settled inside her heart since she'd lost track of her two "angel babies" and now it wasn't different. The angel of death sat down right next to her and only a long minute later did she turn her eyes to face him.

"You didn't find out anything, did you?"

"Sorry, Tess... I've spoken to lots of other angels of death but none of them has seen Andrew recently..."

"I'm so worried about them, Adam... I don't understand why God took my babies away from me..."

He placed a supportive hand over her shoulder, "I'm sure He didn't take them away from you, Tess... I trust that you'll see Monica and Andrew someday, sooner than you think!"

"I hope and pray so too, Adam. I miss them so much..."

Monica, Andrew and Judith spent the afternoon at the city hospital and, even though the little angel insisted that she was now feeling alright, the doctor found it better to run a battery of exams to check her real condition. With a permanent arm wrapped around her small shoulders, and praying that everything was alright with her, Andrew sighed with impatience as they had been there for nearly 20 minutes.

"Andrew..." Monica's soothing voice took him out of his reverie and he turned his face to look at her, "Yes, angel? Are you alright? Are you feeling dizzy again?"

"I'm fine..." she quickly replied, tenderly caressing his face, "... I just don't want to see you nervous. Please, be calm. I'm here with you and nothing's gonna change that, Andrew."

He covered her small hand with his and kissed her palm, "I know, baby... But watching you faint out there was... Scary... for a minute I thought..."

"Shh... don't say that. If there's something I'm positively sure is that God made us to be together..."

At that very moment, the doctor who was assisting Monica called them into her office and they noticed that she was holding a paper with the possible diagnosis for the angel's indisposition. "Please, have a seat."

Tense faces were staring at her and Andrew was the first one to speak, "Please, doctor, tell us what's wrong with my wife. I know that that dismay wasn't normal and-"

"Please, calm down, sir..." the woman replied, noticing that he would be the one needing help if he didn't calm down.

"What happened to Monica, doctor? Is it some kind of infection? Is she sick?" Judith wanted to know, a bit calmer than the blond angel but equally worried.

But instead of a serious, worried expression, the doctor's face was a happy one and a friendly smile made them even more confused. "No, Monica doesn't have any infection, she's not ill at all."

"See? I told you there wasn't any reason to worry!" the Irish angel spoke, squeezing her husband's hand.

"No? But... but what about the dismay?"

"Why did her blood pressure fall all of a sudden, doctor?" Andrew and Judith wanted to know, not really convinced by the woman's words.

"Well... there's a perfect explanation for that..." she looked at the couple and concluded, "Monica, Andrew... congratulations: you'll become parents soon!"

"What?" they both spoke, not believing what they had just heard.

"You're approximately 6 weeks pregnant, Monica!"

Andrew suddenly felt his heart beat accelerating once again, just like when Monica had fainted in his arms, a couple of hours earlier. He stared back at her in obvious disbelief, and then back at the doctor, who was used to seeing such reaction. He would become a father – a new life was now resting inside his beloved Monica; their love was stronger than he'd ever imagined, so strong that now a little baby came out of it: his son or daughter. After the great shock, broad smile finally appeared on his handsome face Andrew released her hand and caressed her flat belly, his gaze changing from her belly to her soft brown eyes, which were as full of tears as his own.

With Monica it wasn't different. The little angel felt like she was about to faint once again at the sudden surprise brought by that piece of news. A piece of wonderful news. With tears immediately falling from her eyes, she covered Andrew's hand with hers and her trembling smile came next, as she was already picturing herself holding their little baby, the material evidence of the great love she and her beloved Andrew shared.

"Our baby, Andrew..." she managed to speak, before he knelt right in front of her and held her tightly.

"Yes, angel... our baby... our little baby..." he said, kissing her lips and caressing her face, also crying with emotion. "I love you so much, sweetie... So much..."

"I love you, Andrew... Oh, Father... You've given us so much..." she spoke, holding her husband tightly, her tears never ceasing.

"Oh, my God... Thank You!" Judith spoke, her heart also bursting with happiness as her tears fell down her cheeks, already feeling like a grandmother.


	17. Chapter 16

CHAPTER 16

If Monica and Andrew considered themselves the most blessed people in the world and thanked God every single day for their love, the news about their baby made them sure life couldn't be happier. The little child was the ultimate proof that their loving Father could transform a tragedy into something so wonderful that even the angels turned into humans couldn't have dreamed of.

Five months later, Monica and Andrew were busy preparing the spare bedroom in the house to receive the little one who was on the way, always with Judith's help. They usually did the decoration work in the evenings, after dinner, and Monica had always something new to add or to change in the baby's room, frequently catching Andrew chuckling at her indecision.

"Do you think our wee one will like this stuffed donkey we bought last week Andrew?" she wanted to know, with a pensive (and rather worried) expression on her face. The blond angel couldn't avoid a small laugher, as he wrapped his arms around her waist from behind and looked at the huge donkey that rested in a corner of the bedroom. "Of course he or she will, Angel. And... wasn't it you who said it was the 'cutest donkey you'd ever seen'? What's wrong with it now?"

"Oh, well... I think its size can be a little bit intimidating and I'm afraid our little angel is scared with it..."

Laughing even more, he shook his head and then kissed her cheek lovingly, "Monica, you're unbelievable, you know? Adorably unbelievable!"

"We have to ponder and think about everything before the baby is born, Andrew!"

"Well, okay... Answering to your question: no, the donkey is not scary. And I bet this little one will have lots of fun riding it!"

She bit her lower lips still unsure, "You think so?"

"I do! And I also think it's high time for you both went to bed!" he exclaimed, now with an authoritarian tone in his voice, "It's late!"

"Okay..." she replied, playfully rolling her eyes.

"I'll go there in a minute, I'll turn the lights off first."

When he finally entered their bedroom, Monica was already lying and he even thought she had fallen asleep. But as he climbed in bed, she opened her eyes. "Hey... I thought my Sleeping beauty was sleeping already..." he said, lying right next to her.

Smiling, she let go of her pillow and inched closer to him, so that she was resting her head over his chest. "It wasn't comfortable enough... But now it is..." came her sleepy reply.

A small laughter escaped him, and he immediately started to caress her hair. "Oh, so you mean I'm your pillow?"

Giggling, she raised her head and looked at him. Her words, however, died in her mouth as their eyes met and Monica spent the last minute just staring at him, trying to see beyond his handsome face.

"Angel? What is it?" he asked, frowning with curiosity.

"I... I'm not sure..." she kept on looking at him for a few seconds more, and he broke the silence again, "Are you remembering anything?"

"I don't know for sure... Your eyes..." she took her hand up to his face and touched his cheek and then his lips with her fingertips, "... your smile... And the way you look and smile at me... It's all so familiar... But then... I'm not sure if I'm remembering them before the accident, or if this is just a recent memory..."

He took her hand and kissed its palm, and then placed it close to his heart, "You know what I think, Angel? That the way I look and smile at you has never changed because I loved you long before the accident."

Her broad and meek smile let him overwhelmed with tenderness. "Judith always says that!"

He inched even closer to his wife, "Well, she's the wisest person I know then!" And then he kissed her lips softly and tenderly like he always did before they fell asleep.

"You should rest, my Angel... Going to work and then getting busy with the house stuff is making you twice tired because of your condition. And remember you want to go to the mall tomorrow." He said, tenderly caressing her hair.

"I know..." she said, that monotonous caress he was performing in her hair making her eyelids getting heavier with sleep.

"Sleep now, baby... and have only good dreams..."

"Since you're holding me like this, I'm sure I will..."

"I love you..."

"I love you, too."

X

On that Saturday morning, Andrew had to go up to the office, and they had also arranged to go to the shopping mall and see some more baby clothes and other items. The blond angel was the first one to wake up and, being so protective of his beloved Monica, he decided to let her sleep for some more time. He took a shower, got dressed and prepared breakfast, but when he returned to the bedroom the Irish angel was still asleep.

Frowning a little, but still gazing at her with tenderness, he sat down at the edge of the bed and caressed her cheek. "My angel..." his whispered voice and the light contact of his fingertips with her delicate skin caused Monica to open her eyes slowly, and his loving face was the first thing she saw. "Good morning, my beautiful dreamer..."

The sleepy smile on her face was probably one of the thousand things that made his heart beat faster whenever he saw her.

"Good morning, Andrew..." she spoke, with an equally sleepy voice.

He leaned over and kissed her cheek lovingly, and then lay his hand over her belly. "How did you both sleep, huh?"

With a permanent smile, Monica looked at her growing belly, which was still small due to her own petite form. "Very well..." But the expression on her meek face turned into a questioning one when she saw his clothes, and she frowned a little. "Where are you going so early?"

Chuckling, he shook his head. "For your information, Angel, it's almost 10 o'clock!"

"All that?" the amazement in her voice caused him to be twice amused.

"Yes, and I had to go up to the office to give in the papers I've been working on this week. And later on you wanted to go to the mall to see some things for the baby..."

"Oh, yes... that's true..."

Andrew gazed at her for a few instants and put a few strands away from her face, "What is it, sweetie?"

"I guess I'm not coming, Andrew... You see, I'm a wee bit tired..."

Hearing that was enough to fill his heart with worry, "Tired? Monica, is there something wrong?"

"No, Andrew, no... I guess I just got a bit tired... I spent the day at work yesterday and when we got back I took some time to tidy up the baby's room..."

He sighed deeply, visibly not happy with that, "Yes, and you shouldn't have done that, Monica. Resting is essential in your condition, I could have tidied it up later."

But she closed her eyes briefly and let out a small giggle, "You wouldn't... this was a girl's job!"

He narrowed his eyes with mock annoyance, which amused her even more. "I'll sleep a little more, Andrew. We can go to the mall some other day..."

"Okay, Angel. I'll take the opportunity to get my pocket watch at the watchmaker then, they phoned me saying that they had fixed it yesterday." He leaned over again and kissed her lips softly. "You rest as much as you can, ok? When I get back I'll prepare lunch."

"Ok..."

"I love you."

"I love you, too, Andrew."

He stood up from their bed and was leaving the bedroom, when Monica called him again. "Andrew?"

"Yes?"

She sat up straight. "Could you hold me?"

"You don't have to ask twice, baby..." he said, involving her small form in his strong arms. "Is there any special reason for that?"

She rested her head over his shoulder, sighing deeply with contentment. "Well... first, it's because I love you..." then her lips turned into a mischievous smile, "...and second because you're amazingly dashing this morning..." she said, enjoying the smell of his cologne.

Chuckling, he kissed the side of her head and then pulled away a few inches, "You know something, Monica? I've always wanted to hear it from you!"

X 

Despite her tiredness, Monica didn't remain in bed for a long time. In fact, she was feeling a bit better now - and hungry. The angel headed to the kitchen to eat the huge breakfast Andrew had prepared her in advance, and a few minutes were enough for her to eat everything and eager for more. In fact, she was feeling an uncontrollable desire to eat icecream.

"I wonder if there's coffee icecream somewhere in this world, you know, little one..." she spoke, caressing her belly with tenderness while checking the freezer, "Decaff mocha icecream... It must not be so difficult to make it. But I'll leave it up to your daddy when he has some free time..." she let out a disappointed sigh when she didn't find what she was looking for.

The Irish angel pondered about the time and how long it would take for Andrew to return and then decided to go to the nearest market to buy some icecream. It was close to their house and she would be back before Andrew. She changed her clothes, put an extra coat on due to the chilly weather that morning, and left.

X 

Monica didn't take too long to find out what she wanted. Holding two pots of icecream and some other small items, she paid for them and left the market carrying two packages and although they were not heavy, she considered taking a taxi back home - that way she would arrive first than Andrew. The angel was crossing the parking lot of the market heading to its exit gate when she suddenly heard a loud voice not far from where she was.

"_I parked this baby in the right position, and don't you dare teaching me how to do it, mister!_"

"_Your car is too big to be parked here, you should put it near the wall, so that the other cars can pass!"_

For some reason unknown to her, that strong voice called Monica's attention and she followed its sound. And after walking a few steps, Monica's heart nearly stopped beating when she saw a dark skinned old lady standing in front of a red Cadillac arguing with another man. The Irish angel let go of the packages she was carrying and covered her mouth, paleness now all over her face. The thud of the packages also called the other woman's attention and when she turned to see what was happening, she was equally paralysed with shock.

"Tess..." Monica whispered, her eyes immediately filled with tears, and a turmoil of thousands of memories in her mind. The supervisor forgot about the previous argument and, with her heart pounding loudly in her chest, she walked towards her long time lost friend. "Oh, Father... Monica... Angel girl, it's you!"

The two wasted no time and held each other in a tight embrace.

"Angel girl! I found you! I finally found you, baby!"

"I remember Tess! I remember everything!"

Monica and Tess cried in each other's arms for long minutes. The emotion inside their very soul was such that prevented them from speaking and all they could do was feel God's loving light shining upon them, like a soothing voice saying that everything would be alright now.

It was the supervisor who spoke first. Tess pulled away just a few inches and looked at her dearest friend's face. "Angel girl, that's you! That's really you, baby! I've been looking for you and Andrew for over a year! I missed you two so much! What happened to you?"

Sobbing, the Irish angel tried to speak. "I lost my memory, Tess... I didn't remember who I was... I forgot everything in the accident..."

"Accident?" Tess' eyes grew wider with worry and surprise, "Come with me, baby, let's get in the car..."

The older angel gathered the packages left on the ground and placed them in the back seat of her Cadillac. Monica stood by the vehicle, looking at it and touching it with tears of sadness still rolling down her face - that car represented so much for both of them. Then both took the driver's and passenger's seats.

"Tell me what happened, baby?" she said, but before Monica started to speak again, the supervisor looked at the man who was arguing with her a few minutes before. "Forget it, I'm not leaving until I finish here!"

As he went away, mumbling something under his breath, Monica started to tell the long story. "There was an accident with the bus where Andrew and I were, on the day we took a trip to Baton Rouge. We were seriously injured, Tess..." the look on the supervisor's face was one of sorrow to hearing that. "We were taken to a hospital and later on to another hospital... I was in a comma for many days..."

"Oh, baby... I'm so sorry to hear it, angel girl..." Tess took Monica's hand in both of hers.

"Andrew woke up before than me. And then, finally I was out of the comma, we both realised we couldn't remember who we were..."

"Oh, my God, don't tell me that!"

"We lost our memory on the day of the accident and nothing could bring it back. The doctors said it would come back with time but I was already starting to believe it had gone forever... But when I saw you here it was like an electric discharge, everything came back to my mind and I finally could remember who I was!"

"I knew the Father would bring you back to me, angel girl, I knew it!" the shared another tight embrace, and the older angel remembered something.

"What about angel boy? where is he? I need to see him too!"

At that moment, Monica's face went pale again. "Andrew..."

"What is it, Monica? Where is Andrew? He's living here, in this town too, isn't he?"

"Y-yes... he... he is..." came a feeble reply.

"Do you know where he is? I have to see him! You said he lost his memory too!"

Monica stared at the supervisor and another flood of tears rolled down her face.

"Monica, what is it? Did anything happen to my angel boy? Where is he?"

Sobbing, and trembling from head to her toes, the little angel tried to speak. "He's... at work now... but he'll be back soon..."

"Well do you know where he lives? We must go there now!"

"I do..." was all that she could answer. Tess decided not to force Monica to say more - the emotion of the moment had been too strong, and after squeezing her charge's hand, she started the car and they left the market.

X

Adam walked along the sidewalk on that beautiful town checking every shop he passed by. Finally, he stopped in front of an old but well cared building, where one could sea a sign written "Watchmaker". The angel of death smiled, pleased to find the place he was looking for and opened the door. "Good morning, sir, what can I do for you?" an old gentleman greeted him.

"Oh, good morning. You see, I have this pocket watch for years and it never ever stopped but today, for some strange reason, it's not working... I was wondering if you could fix it... The gentleman at the news-stand told me you're the only watchmaker in town."

"And the best one!" the old man replied, with a friendly smile, "Can I see your watch?"

When Adam handed him the gold object, the watchmaker's face was one of surprise. "Hum... What a coincidence! I fixed one exactly like this yesterday!"

"A coincidence?" the angel spoke, finding the fact that rather curious - and knowing pretty well that there was no thing as a coincidence.

"Yes! It was one..." a small noise at the door interrupted the man: a customer had just come inside the shop. "Oh, here he is! The owner of the other watch!"

Adam turned around and, to his surprise, Andrew was standing there, right in front of him. "Andrew..."

After a few moments of hesitation, the blond angel replied in a whisper. "Adam..."


	18. Chapter 17

CHAPTER 17

"Andrew! Good Lord, we've been looking for you for ages!" Adam exclaimed, giving a few steps close to his friend, whose face was one of a shock.

"Adam... Adam, it's you! I can remember!" the blond angel spoke, now shaking hands with his co-worker.

"Of course this is me, buddy... Are you alright? You look pale..."

Andrew took his hand up to his forehead, frowning and feeling a piercing headache caused by the turmoil of memories that, all at once, came back to his mind. He felt dizzy. "Oh, Father... I can remember now... My memory, Adam! My memory is back!"

X 

At a coffee shop, not far from the watchmaker, the two angels of death sat, and during the few minutes they chatted, Andrew told his friend about the accident and how he had lost his memory, over a year before.

"Andrew, everybody was worried about you... We've looked for you for such a long time, Tess especially!"

"Tess... God, I haven't spoken her name for such a long time! How I miss her!" he exclaimed, "You see, Monica and I couldn't remember where we'd come from, we had nothing that could identify us apart from our first names... Judith, our assignment and the lady who took care of us all this time, put advertisements on the newspapers and everywhere else looking for some relative or friend, but of course nobody appeared... We came to the conclusion we were orphans..."

Adam shook his head, not believing the series of misunderstandings that put the angels away for so much time. "And Tess and I came to the conclusion that it was God's will that we couldn't find you both! And what about Monica? You said she was seriously injured in the accident, how is she now? Did she recover?"

"Yes, she did..." Andrew was going to say something else, but a sudden thought crossed his mind. "Monica..."

"Yes! Where is she?"

The blond angel stood up from the chair and grabbed his jacket, "Adam, you need to come with me, quick!"

X

A few minutes after they had met at the supermarket parking lot, Monica and Tess finally arrived at Monica's house. The small journey was quiet, as Tess felt that her dearest friend was still too nervous to talk. Their meeting had surely put an end to months of anguish and despair, to both of them: the oldest angel had finally found her two beloved friends, and Monica's memory came back when she thought it would never return. As they entered the house, the supervisor made the young angel sit down on the sofa and rushed to the kitchen. She returned a minute later, bringing her a glass of water.

"Here, baby, drink this."

With a trembling hand, Monica grabbed the glass and drank just a little of the water inside it. "Thank you... I'm... I haven't been feeling well this morning..."

The supervisor sat down next to her and took the glass from her hand and placed it on the coffee table. Then, she took her hand. "Now tell me everything, baby. How did this happen?"

"Andrew and I didn't have anybody except each other and Judith... She was the one taking care of us all this time, but she didn't have any idea of who we were or we had come from... Our assignment, Tess, became a mother to both of us... She sheltered us in her house, she gave us a job and treated us like her own children, as, since her husband and daughter passed away, Judith herself didn't have any family at all."

"Well... at least there was someone to watch over you and angel boy..." she caressed the younger angel's face, "All this time, I wondered if you were alright, if you needed anything... Even though, deep down inside, I knew the Father wouldn't abandon you two, and that everything was part of a greater plan." Tess spoke, relief filling her soul.

"Since the day Andrew and I woke up at the hospital and didn't know who we were, we've been supporting each other and, apart from Judith, he's been the only family I have."

"I've looked for you two so much!"

"I know you have. But we were transferred to different cities, due to the seriousness of the accident, and when we finally moved here, so much time had passed..."

"I must have been so close to you! And more than once. It was all a series of misunderstandings..." the older angel looked around her, "Do you think Andrew will be here soon? I missed him so much!"

Hearing that, Monica lowered her head and bit her lower lip, feeling the presence of fresh tears in the corner of her eyes. As she let out a small sob, Tess placed a supportive hand over her shoulder, "Angel girl? Are you feeling well? I know you're still too shaken with our meeting; we both are, but is there something wrong with you? You're so pale, baby..."

Taking a deep breath, and now allowing the tears to fall freely from her eyes, the Irish angel raised her head and looked at her friend, deep inside feeling a knot in her throat. "Tess... there's... there's something you need to know..."

"Then tell me, baby, what is it? Is there anything you need? A medicine? You've been in human form for so long, you might have caught a flu or something..."

Monica covered her mouth, trying to stifle a sob as she nodded, "You're right... I've been in human form for a long time... Both of us have..." after a short pause, she looked at the supervisor's dark eyes, "...Tess... All this time we've been away, many things happened..."

It was at that moment that they heard a car being parked outside the house, and seconds later, the entrance door flung open: Andrew and Adam entered the house, and the blond angel's eyes immediately met with Monica's crying ones. And he had no doubt: she too had recovered her memory.

"Angel boy!" Tess stood up and walked over to him, and for a moment his attention turned to the supervisor. "Tess!"

They both held each other tightly for the first time in all those months, and one more time, the supervisor was moved with tears to see her "angel boy" again. "Baby... I prayed so much to be able to hold you like this!" she spoke, tears welling up her eyes.

Adam for himself walked up to Monica and smiled at his angelic friend, "Monica! Sweetie... I hope you still remember me!"

Even with the tension lying in the air, the little angel managed a small smile at him, "Of course I do, Adam..." she said, receiving a kiss on the top of her head. "How are you? Andrew told me you both had an accident... We were all worried about you guys!"

She looked at Andrew and the blond angel gently pulled away from Tess. After kissing the supervisor's cheek, he walked over up to her and knelt right in front of her. "So you remember too..." he took her hand and reached over to caress her cheek, moved with the tears that never stopped falling from her eyes. "I do... And... And you?"

"I do, Angel... I remembered at the moment I met Adam..."

"Andrew, I guess angel girl here is not feeling well... She's so pale!" If Tess was worried now it was the blond angel who frowned with concern, "Monica? Is that true, are you feeling-"

"I'm... I'll be alright, Andrew... I was trying to tell Tess something that... that she and Adam should know..." she looked deep inside his green eyes, searching for the courage and strength to face that difficult moment. He nodded, knowing exactly what she meant, their connection stronger than never.

"You're right..."

"What's happening here? What should we know?" the supervisor asked, with a nervous tone in her voice.

With Andrew's permanent grip on her hand, Monica looked at Tess and then at Adam. "As I was trying to say... many things happened during this time we've lived here... in human form..." a tear rolled down her cheek as she concluded, "Andrew and I... We... We got married..."

Tess' eyes grew wide with shock "What?"

"Oh huh... and we say there's not such a thing as coincidence..." Adam whispered, running his hand through his hair.

"We had no idea who we were, or where we'd come from! We... we didn't know about our own nature! And how could we, Tess? How could we know we were angels in human form?" the Irish angel spoke, and then broke down and cried once again. Andrew quickly wrapped his arms around her fragile form and started to caress her hair, trying everything to put her heart at ease, even though he himself was feeling nervous - and deeply worried about the implications of their latest actions.

"Married... Dear Father... Married..." the supervisor repeated, not believing what she was hearing.

"There was no way we could've guessed..." Andrew started to speak, yet, he didn't know what all that meant. "We got married seven months ago..."

"This is all... so unexpected..." Adam spoke, shaking his head and feeling lost like his friends.

Tess searched for an armchair and sat down, suddenly feeling weak in the knees to stand up straight. "Two angels turned into humans who got married..."

Monica's sobs caused Andrew to be even more worried, and he soothed her long auburn hair and kissed her forehead lovingly, "Shh... Calm down, Angel... You cannot have so many strong emotions... Remember your condition!"

"Why? There's something wrong with my angel girl, isn't there? I knew it! She's so weak and pale and... What is it, Andrew?"

As he wiped Monica's tears, the little angel looked at the supervisor again, taking in a deep breath to go on talking. "There's... there's something else you need to know..."

"And what is it? Please, tell me, what's wrong with you, baby!"

Monica lowered her head and slowly, she unbuttoned the woollen sweater she was wearing. As she reached the last button, she opened the garment and to Tess and Adam's amazement, it was finally possible to see her small growing belly.

A sob escaped the Irish angel as she spoke again, "I'm five months pregnant..."


	19. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

Tess and Adam were both shocked not only with the news about Monica and Andrew's marriage, but also about the little baby she was expecting. If there was a greater purpose in all that it was not clear to them yet. To start with, angels were not supposed to fall in love, and none of them had ever experienced a human life the way they both had. Besides, so far, it was believed that they could not generate another life.

But Monica and Andrew were there to prove the opposite.

"I wish I knew what to say... but... I can't... I'm as lost as you all probably are..." Adam was the first one to break the silence of the room, and only then Tess spoke again.

"Never in my whole existence I've seen something like this happen... And you're right, Adam... I'm lost... I'm completely lost..."

Monica covered her mouth with her hand, stifling another sob, and quickly stood up, "I'm sorry..."

She rushed upstairs and they heard the bedroom door close a second later, and Andrew elected not to go after her for a while, feeling like a useless creature once he didn't have the answers she was certainly looking for. The Irish angel lay down in her bed and cried freely for long painful minutes, terrified with the consequences of her latest actions. "Father... please tell me what's going to happen with us now... to our baby... to our love..." she prayed, holding onto a pillow.

Downstairs, Tess broke down the persistent silence and stood up from the armchair. "If you two excuse me... I need to go somewhere too..." right before she left, the supervisor took Andrew's hand and squeezed it, "But I'm coming back later, baby, I promise..."

Adam, on the other hand, stayed there and he and Andrew went up to the front porch, from where they saw Tess' Cadillac leaving. Noticing how his friend grabbed the wooden railing until his knuckles turned white, he placed a supportive hand over his shoulder, "Take at ease, buddy... It's a tough moment, I know, but remember God's plan is perfect... Even though we cannot understand it at a first moment."

Sighing deeply, the blond angel turned to his co-worker with worry, anguish and visible sadness. "I know, Adam... But... if you ask me... I'm not sure if I would give up my current life if requested so. The fact is that I love what I have... the many blessings I have since the day Monica opened her eyes for the first time at that hospital, all those months ago..."

"You both really fell in love..."

"Yes! And I love her more than anything else in this world... On the day we got married, even having no memory, I was sure that I had never been that happy, and now I know it was true! And then, five months ago, when I heard about her pregnancy, I even felt guilty for having so much happiness while others had nothing... She's my wife, Adam, and she's expecting my child! That's a fact I don't ever want to change!"

The other angel of death gave a long sigh and nodded his head, "You know something, Andrew? I don't know what the Father's plan is yet, but, somehow, I've always felt that what you and Monica share, this strong connection between you two, is so rare among angels, and it's so special... All this must be a sign that nothing that's happened lately is totally wrong..."

Andrew managed a small smile, "Thanks... I... I'll go upstairs and see her now... I may not know what to tell her, but I won't let her go away from my arms until all this is solved..."

Adam also smiled, and patted him on the shoulder, "Go ahead, buddy! I'll go and find Tess."

X

Andrew went up to their bedroom and found Monica there, lying on their bed and still crying softly. Quietly, he sat down on the edge of the bed and removed a few strands of her long auburn hair away from her face; the soft movement of his fingers through her hair always brought her a comforting sensation. As he bent down and kissed her cheek, she spoke for the first time, never turning her eyes away from the window, and from the clouds that covered the sky outside.

"...I wonder if we'll be angels again..." her voice was hoarse and came out like a whisper.

"We _are_ angels, baby... Our true nature will never change, I'm sure of that."

She finally turned her eyes to him; all the fear and anguish written in those sweet brown pools breaking his heart. "And what will happen to us now, Andrew?"

She desperately needed an answer and he could not deny her one. "Well... I guess that, eventually, we'll have to go back to our... 'normal' life, as we are angels before anything else..."

A sob escaped her as she searched for his green pools. "And how could we give up our baby, Andrew? How could we give up our love?"

"Shh..." Andrew sat down next to her and gathered the sobbing angel in his arms, kissing her forehead repeatedly. Then, he placed his free hand over Monica's belly. "I would never be able to give up on the most precious blessings I've ever been granted... Never, Angel!"

And at that moment something amazing happened: both felt their baby kicking for the first time.

"Oh, Father!" she exclaimed, her voice thick with emotion, and also placing her hand over her belly.

"See? It's real... Our baby is real!" Andrew's eyes clouded with tears at the little creature kicking the inside of Monica's belly, and moving as if announcing he or she would be there soon, no matter what had happened. Moved with emotion, and now with a crying smile on his face, he bent down and kissed her belly softly, once again with his heart filled with the so familiar happiness he'd found next to the one he loved.

"Hey! Mommy and daddy are here, little one! And we can 'hear' you..."

As the child kept on moving inside her belly, Monica caressed Andrew's blond hair and both exchanged a moved glance. "I may not be sure of what's gonna happen to us, but there's one thing I'm certain, Angel: us. We were meant to be... My love for you, it'll never change, but it'll certainly grow stronger each and every minute, through the centuries to come."

"I love you so much, Andrew..."

Like they had done on that same morning, the two angels held each other tightly, and remained like that for a long, long time.

X 

Tess spent some good hours inside a small chapel not far from Monica and Andrew's house. Sitting on the front pew, she spent long hours praying and asking for guidance, as she didn't know what should be done in that situation. Angels were not created for that purpose. Falling in love, getting married and generating life - this was for humans. Yet, another thought crossed the supervisor's mind: how could angels be denied those feelings if their own nature was a loving one? Love, in its purest form, was what she saw in Monica and Andrew's eyes. Besides this, they were God's children even before they were God's servants, and a loving Father would never punish His children for holding on to a feeling that He himself had created - the most beautiful feeling a living creature could hold towards another.

Adam ended up finding Tess there, and sat down next to her. "No answer yet?"

"I've been praying and trying to understand all that's happened, Adam. All the time I spent here, I thought about my poor babies, and... although I spent my entire existence believing nothing like this would and could happen to an angel... When I look at Monica and Andrew, I just can't help but to think they deserve a chance..."

"I feel exactly the same, Tess... Those two love each other, and I can tell you they won't give up on this love, even if they have to give up being angels... And both choices are certainly very painful."

It was at that very moment that a soft glow involved the two angels, and they both could hear the Father's answer: it was His plan that Andrew and Monica got married and experienced a little bit of human life. Their angelic nature had never changed. They were and would always be His angels, and He loved them so much, that on the day they got married, on that same church, He Himself was present, and cast His blessings upon them.

"Oh, Father... Father... thank You! Thank You so much!" Tess' eyes were filled with tears of emotion and happiness to know that her angel babies would always remain like that.

"I just wonder how happy Andrew and Monica will feel when they get the news!" Adam spoke, smiling broadly, equally happy for his friends.

At that moment, two small objects suddenly materialized in their hands: two little boxes, each of them containing a golden angel medal inside, and each medal with Tess' and Adam's names carved on them.

"But what can possibly..." Tess' voice trailed off as she read her own name and then Adam's name on the other medal.

"I guess it's a present, Tess! A present for Monica and Andrew!"

"Yes... So what are you doing here? Let's get back there, they need to know what the Father told us!

X

It was certainly a difficult day for the couple of angels. Monica and Andrew spent long hours worrying and wondering about their future and of their baby, and didn't even feel like eating or talking or going outside. Much to his insistence, she left the bedroom to help him to prepare dinner, and she kept on feeling the baby moving, and released a tear or a sob every time she felt so, sure that no matter what happened to them, she would never give up on their child.

"Our little angel never stops moving, right?" Andrew asked, stopping his task to lay his hand over her belly. She let out a sob and managed a bittersweet smile, "No..."

As she covered his hand with her much smaller one, Monica looked up at him for a long moment, and the blond angel tenderly caressed her cheek, lost in the spark of her sad doe-like eyes. "You know when I first started loving you?"

"You... you've told me..."

"No... I was wrong... It wasn't on the day you woke up at the hospital... It's probably the only thing I was wrong about all this time... I fell in love with you on the day Tess introduced us... And you were mad at me because you were jealous..." A small laughter escaped her, mixed with tears that never stopped from falling. "You looked absolutely lovely... but then... you always do, baby..."

"I just wonder if the Father had... had this in mind when He made our paths cross on that day..." she said, with a hint of sadness covering her beautiful Gaelic features.

And it was at that moment that they heard another familiar voice, "The Father had planned all this a long time ago, baby, and He's very pleased to see that you kept on being His servants during the whole time, even if you didn't know about your own true nature."

They turned around to see Tess and Adam had appeared there. "Tess?"

"Adam and I came back here to tell you that God has blessed you both, babies..." the oldest angel said, followed by Adam's words, corroborating hers. "Yes. He's blessed you on the day you first met, when you got married... and now... with this little angel Monica is expecting..."

Monica's eyes were once again filled with tears of emotion and they started to roll freely on her cheeks. "A little angel?" her voice came out as a whisper.

"What is it you're telling us?" Andrew wanted to know, with a few tears in the corner of his eyes.

"We're telling you that you're both wonderful angels... and that you will always be. And what happened between you two was meant to be. You two had no idea of who you were and even in the most difficult moments of your existence, one thing remained the same: your faith in God. It was from this faith that the love you feel for each other came... or grew up, as Adam and I came to the conclusion that it's been there longer before the accident happened."

They exchanged a loving glance and, sobbing and smiling, the Irish angel nodded her head. "You're right... It was..."

"The Father knows that too... And He also knows about how many other souls you've helped even being in human form, with words of reassurance and encouragement," Adam spoke, "All this time you been guiding people not only to historic sites or beautiful beaches or high mountains. You've been leading them in God's way."

A flood of relief filled their hearts at hearing those words. And Tess kept on speaking. "Your love is holy too, babies. It's been blessed by the Father Himself, otherwise I'm sure I'd have found you earlier, and none of this would have happened."

At that moment, their clothes had changed, and now they were dressed with garments of the purest white. "So... It means that we were accepted back?" Despite Tess' reassurance, Monica's voice still held a hint of fear.

"Oh, baby, of course you are! Welcome back!"

The angels shared a loving embrace and remained like that for some time, until Tess broke the silence. "Adam and I have something to give you..."

"Oh, yes, that's true!" the angel of death agreed, and both of them took the small boxes they had previously received and gave them to Monica and Andrew.

"It's a small gift for the baby, but as we don't know yet if it'll be a boy or a girl, we have two."

They opened the boxes and saw the two golden angel medals inside. "Oh, Tess, they're so beautiful..." Monica exclaimed, holding the shining pendant in the palm of her hand, and reading her friends' names on them.

"They sure are!" her beloved Andrew agreed.

Monica looked at them and spoke again, "But what about our baby?" she wanted to know.

Tess held her both hands, "You'll have this baby, angel girl, of course. God has special plans for the baby you're carrying, as we angels have never been born or had a childhood. This new angel will be the first one to experience something like this and you will be there to live through it all too...

"

"Little angel?" Andrew repeated, happier than he could never imagine.

"Yes, little angel! Like you both are!" And then she smiled, hearing a loving message whispered in her heart by a loving One. "And, as angels, you both have an assignment to finish... It's time Judith knows the truth you've been sent to tell her..."

Monica and Andrew looked at each other and also smiled, as they too could hear what they should do next.

X

Later on that same night, Judith parked her car in front of her house, and as she got off she looked at Monica and Andrew's house. "Oh, good, they're still awake!" The woman had been away for some days and missed them deeply. "I'll put this suitcase in the living room and go say hi to them!"

She opened up her house door and to her surprise, Monica and Andrew were standing there, in the middle of her living room.

"Monica! Andrew! I thought you were at home, your lights are on!" she said, walking up to them and holding them both.

"We have something to say to you and... it couldn't wait..." the Irish angel spoke, smiling at the woman with the satisfaction of someone who had beautifully accomplished a mission.

"Oh, I also have lots of things to tell you! I visited a small town not far from here that is so charming and you-"

Monica gently interrupted her by holding the woman's hands. "Judith..."

"Yes, dear?"

"This morning our memory returned and we could finally remember who we are..."

The woman's eyes grew wide with amazement, "Oh, my goodness! But that's wonderful news!" she exclaimed, "You have to tell me everything you can remember! And how did that happen? What about your family, you-"

"All your questions will be answered but first, Andrew and I have a message for you..."

"A message?"

Andrew nodded his head. "Yes. A message from a loving Father who's been watching over you for a long time... And who loves you so much that He gave you His own angels to help you heal the pain you had in your heart."

The expression on her face changed into a confused one. "I... I don't understand..."

At that moment, the young couple standing in front of her, and who she loved as her own children, started to glow.

"M-Monica... Andrew... what's happening to you?"

"Please, don't be afraid, Judith... Andrew and I are angels."

"Angels?" she said, with amazement.

"Yes..." he confirmed, "Angels of God, sent to you when you most needed."

Her eyes were immediately filled with tears as she heard that. "God... sent you both to me?"

"Yes!" Monica lay a gentle hand against the woman's face, looking at her with the same love a daughter looks at her mother. "And God is so good and so wise that He sent us to you in a way that not even Andrew and I could have imagined..."

"But... the accident and you being hurt and losing your memory..."

"We go where we're sent, to help the ones who need. And almost always we are in human form. And due to this we're exposed to the same risks that humans are," Andrew explained her.

"And when we were the ones who needed help, you had no doubts about what you should do, Judith... The faithless woman, who had closed her heart to the rest of the world on the day she lost her daughter and husband in a terrible accident suddenly turned into a loving and compassionate lady. You sheltered two angels in your house, you watched over them, you loved them, and adopted them as if they were your own children, your own family..."

The tears that filled the woman's eyes soon rolled down her face, "And I thank God each and every day for sending you both to my life... Yes, you became my family... You two brought happiness back to my life, as I love you so much! So very much!"

"God knows that... We know that... we _feel_ that too..." Monica said, tears falling from her own eyes, "And we are here now to tell you that God loves you, Judith Harris. He was holding you in His arms in the moments of sorrow and pain, and protecting you along your journey to recover your faith." She made a quick pause and then kept on talking, "We were sent to show you that there's always a greater plan for everybody, and that's only known by God Himself, not even by his angels."

"I see what you mean, dear..."

"And we love you too, Judith. Angels don't have a mother, but Andrew and I have the privilege to say we do..."

"We have two, to be honest!" he added, and both smiled, thinking about their beloved supervisor.

Judith covered her face for a few seconds, "Oh, God... I feel so ashamed to doubt!"

"But now you know that His love is real..." Andrew removed her hands from her face and looked deep inside her eyes, "...And so is ours!"

"I do, Andrew... I do! I promise I'll never stop believing... To tell you the truth, I feel so honoured..."

Monica gathered the crying lady in her arms and held her for a long minute; she too crying with emotion, and then Andrew also joined the embrace.

It was Judith who interrupted it, and gently pulled away "But... What about your baby? And... are you two leaving? Are you going away?" In her face, an expression of fear and sadness.

"This baby is an angel, like Andrew and me, and God has special plans for this little one... And no, we're not leaving, Judith. God doesn't give a present to His children and then rips it away from them..." the Irish angel explained, she herself aware of that fact now.

"Monica is right. We'll stay here until the baby is born, and then we'll continue being angels and sent to where we have to, to help the ones who need, but we'll never ever abandon you, Judith. We will always be with you, and we'll come back here to visit you, always!"

Relief filled her soul to hear that, and to know that one way or the other, she would have her beloved "children" close to her. "I'm just so happy! Thank you, Father! Thank you for everything!"


	20. Epilogue

EPILOGUE

"I'm sure it's a girl! It can only be a girl! Look at the shape of Monica's belly!" Tess exclaimed. She, Monica and Andrew were in the baby's bedroom, which was now practically ready for the little one who would start living there in the next following days. Monica was almost nine months pregnant and besides Andrew's permanent devotion, Tess, along with Judith, had been watching over their "angel girl," giving her all the attention and care a mother would give to her daughter, and feeling like grandmothers.

The bedroom was furnished and with lots of small objects that Monica and Andrew had carefully chosen. But one detail had not been decided yet: the colour of the bedroom, and the supervisor and the angel of death were having a bit of a dispute about that.

"C'mon, Tess, since when the shape of the belly has something to do with this?" Andrew replied, "It could perfect well be a boy, and he surely would like a blue bedroom!" As he said that, the walls turned from pink, a colour previously selected by Tess, to blue.

Tess crossed her arms in front of her chest and stared at him, "I don't think my angel baby girl here would like that kind of décor, mister!" she stated, and then the walls became pink again, and many dolls appeared on the shelves and on the bed.

Standing between the two angels and trying to control herself not to laugh, Monica gently interrupted the small argument. "I have an idea... Why don't we make it yellow?"

They looked around them and saw the colour of the walls had changed one more time, and the toys spread along the room were both for boys and girls. "I think it's a more... neutral colour," she said, looking at her beloved Andrew and Tess, "Besides, there are two medals and we'll have to wait until the wee one is born to know how if it's an angel boy or an angel girl!"

"Well... it could work..." Tess said, not entirely pleased.

Andrew placed his hand over Monica's belly and smiled, "That's true. And the most important is that he or she will be a very loved angel..." he said, tenderly looking at his wife.

Tess also forgot about the argument and placed her hand over her dearest friend's belly, "Yes, you're right, angel boy! She'll be a very precious angel baby..."

Monica and Andrew exchanged a quick look, not missing the happiness on the supervisor's eyes. But suddenly, the expression on Monica's face changed completely and she let out a painful moan.

"Monica? Angel?" Andrew immediately wrapped an arm around her waist for support and held her hand.

"Angel girl! What's going on? Is there something wrong?" Tess wanted to know, equally worried.

"...I guess... we'll know about the bedroom colour sooner than we thought... Our wee one isn't in the mood for waiting..."

Both Andrew's and Tess' eyes grew wide and panic crept all over them.

"Oh, Father!"

"You mean it's time?"

"Yes, Andrew..."

He quickly pulled a chair for her to sit down and the two angels started to rush around the house, gathering clothes and other items Monica would need to stay in hospital. That task would normally take them half an hour, but in five minutes, they had everything they needed, and Andrew helped his wife to climb down the stairs.

"C'mon, we need to hurry!" Tess exclaimed, standing in the front door and impatiently waiting for them to get at the bottom of the stairs.

"Everything will be alright, Angel, don't worry, I'll be right beside you all the time, I promise!" he said, receiving a loving smile in reply. "I know you will, Andrew... You always are..." Both stared at each other with love reflected in the spark of their eyes. Smiling, they shared a small loving kiss, which only caused Tess to be twice nervous.

"Oh, for heaven's sake! You had plenty of time to kiss each other nine months ago! Now will you grab those car keys? We have an emergency here!" she cried.

"Tess, the keys are in your hands!" the blond angel pointed, he and Monica not managing to hide a hint of amusement.

"So what are we waiting for? Let's get going!"

"Don't you want me to drive?" Andrew suggested, now genuinely worried about their physical integrity.

"No way you're gonna drive, mister, you are too nervous for that!" Tess replied, and disappeared through the door followed by two amused angels.

X

At the moment they arrived at the city hospital, Monica was placed in a wheelchair and carried along the corridor. Adam and Judith arrived in time to talk to them and wish their dear friend all the happiness on that special moment.

"We'll be praying for you and for this little one, dear!" Judith spoke.

"Yes, 'uncle Adam' will be right here waiting to hold him or her!"

"I'm sure it won't be long until my little angel girl is here!" the oldest angel added.

Smiling, even though she was in pain, the Irish angel nodded her head. "I love you all so much..."

"We love you too, baby!" Tess spoke, and Judith added, "Like a daughter!"

Andrew kissed the back of Monica's hand and from that point on he was the only one allowed to go along with the Irish angel and the nurse.

X

Tess, Judith and Adam waited impatiently in the corridor of the city hospital for over an hour. In silence, but with their hearts filled with worry, they walked from one side to another, until Tess first spoke.

"What's happening inside that room, for goodness sake? I mean, how long does it take to have a baby?!"

"And nobody comes here to tell us what's going on! I wish those people were more considerate!" Judith said, equally worried.

"And I wish there was an easier way to get it all solved! Don't they see what we have to go through here?"

Frowning, Tess stared at the angel of death, "Are you insinuating that the Father's creation should have adjustments, mister?"

"No, I-"

"I'll tell you what: if we don't have any news from Monica and the baby I'll go in there myself!" Judith interrupted their argument, decided to find out what was happening to her friend. Hearing that, and feeling a bit jealous, Tess raised her hand to stop her. "No, if there's someone to go in there, it'll be me, I can-"

But before she could finish her sentence, the doctor who was assisting Monica came along the corridor still wearing the clothes from the surgery. "How is she?" Tess, Judith and Adam asked, all at the same time.

The young doctor smiled at them, "Monica is fine, everything went just fine, and they are recovering from the surgery."

Relief filled their souls and they looked at each other with a contented smile on their faces.

"Can we see her and the baby?" Judith wanted to know.

"Yes, sure. I'm sorry, I'll have to get back in there, Monica insisted that I should come here and put your heart at ease. A nurse will come to get you when they're ready."

Saying that, she disappeared through the corridor one more time, and only then Adam remembered of a small detail. "We didn't ask her if it was a boy or a girl!"

"Oh, I'm sure it's a girl!" the supervisor replied.

X

Some time later, the nurse finally came along to tell them they could see Monica. The trio headed to the bedroom number 4 and as Judith softly knocked on the door, they heard Monica's soothing voice replying.

"Come in..."

Tess pushed the door open and they entered the bedroom, smiling broadly when they saw their dear friend cradling a small bundle. And the pink baby clothes left no doubts.

"I knew it was an angel girl!" the supervisor exclaimed, enchanted with the little angel that slept peacefully in her mother's arms.

"When wee Tess arrived she was crying very much, you know, but now she finally fell asleep!" Monica explained, her heart visibly bursting with happiness.

"Aw, I bet she has a powerful voice!" the oldest angel exclaimed. The cute little girl in her arms had reddish brown hair and, with time, they would be able to see her soft brown eyes staring at them with curiosity.

"She's so beautiful, Monica... Just so beautiful!" Judith spoke, moved with tears at the little girl, remembering the time when she too held her daughter in her arms.

The Irish angel moved and offered her the baby. "Don't you want to hold her?"

"C-could I?"

"I bet she'll love to be in her 'grandma's' arms!" and she added, "And she's a blessed little one having two grandmas!"

The woman was overjoyed to hear that. With emotion reflected in her eyes, she carefully gathered the little one in her arms. Little Tess moved her arms a little and then kept on sleeping peacefully, as if she knew she was among people who loved her dearly. "Hey, little angel... You're so gorgeous, sweetie!" she said, kissing the baby's forehead.

"She's as beautiful as her mom!" Adam spoke, taking the girl's tiny hand and kissing it. Tess, on herself, crossed her arms, visibly bothered with the fact that Judith was the one to hold the baby first.

"Well... When I get the chance, I'll take a better look at her, as now things seem to be a little crowded here!"

Trying to stifle a giggle, Monica shook her head, "Oh, don't you worry, Tess... Actually, Andrew and I have a little surprise for you..."

"A surprise?"

At that moment, they heard a light knock on the door, which had been left ajar, and, extremely surprised, they saw Andrew holding another little bundle in his arms. This time, the little one was involved in blue clothes.

"I guess little Adam here is a bit late for the party!"

"Oh, good Lord!"

"You had twins!" Judith and Adam exclaimed.

"Another baby?!" Tess was overwhelmed with amazement and surprise.

"Yes... Now we know why we received two medals instead of one!" Andrew spoke, and joined them. The oldest angel immediately rushed towards him and looked at the little baby, her lips curving into a broad, contented smile a second later, "Oh, look at him! What a handsome face he has! He inspires authority and discipline! I bet my angel boy will make a very fine supervisor when he grows up!"

Andrew and Monica exchanged an amused glance, and he turned to look at the supervisor. "Don't you want to hold him, Tess?"

"Aw, give me that handsome angel boy here!"

Unlike his little sister, Adam had thin blond hair and the future would reveal the fact that he also had sparkling green eyes. While Tess, Judith and Adam gathered around the little angel babies, Andrew took a sit next to Monica, and wrapped his arm around her shoulder, bringing her closer to him. "Look at how happy they are, Angel..." he whispered, kissing her temple lovingly.

"Who? The grown ups or the wee ones?" she said, with amusement, and causing him to chuckle.

"Both, to be honest!"

"You know, Andrew, long before all this happened to us, I used to think there were two kinds of happiness... two kinds of love... One for humans and another for angels. But now I see I was wrong. These feelings have the same origin... the same essence..."

He smiled, and nodded his head. "I know what you mean, Angel... And look what our love has created..."

"It's the most beautiful miracle I've ever seen..." as he wiped a tear away from her cheek with gentle fingers, she added, "And you know what makes me even happier than this? When I look back and remember everything we've been through, it's your face that I see, your voice that I hear and your arms holding me when I was afraid... You stood by me all the time, Andrew, to show me love in its essence..."

"And this is how I will remain forever, my Angel: by your side... loving you each and every day of my existence... for the rest of eternity."

"I love you..." She replied, with emotion written in the spark of her beautiful doe-like eyes. They inched closer and shared a loving kiss, sealing that happy ending for a beautiful love story.

The end.


End file.
